Why do most people crave a dessert after dinner?

Firstly, in people who eat at irregular intervals, the desire for desserts may result from a large burst of insulin after a heavy meal. The sudden “jump” in insulin causes a rapid decrease in blood sugar levels, and thus increases the desire for sweets.

Another cause is the elimination of food products with plenty of complex carbohydrates – whole-wheat bread, grits, cereals, bran, brown rice, and wholemeal pasta. Their presence on the menu makes us feel satisfied after a meal, and compensates for low blood sugar.

The desire to improve your mood by ingesting sugar can also be a factor. Sweet snacks increase our production of the so-called hormone of happiness.

Your habits also play an important role. The more we reach for after-dinner desserts, the more used to the sugar our bodies get – that means more sweet snacks during the day.

Unfortunately, frequent ingestion of sweets is harmful for your body. Frequently reaching for sweets may contribute to gaining excess weight or obesity.

Eating desserts which contain large amounts of sugar and fat adversely affects your health – cakes with cream, chocolate bars with caramel, iced buns, waffles with sweet toppings, pastry, etc.

Therefore, you should replace traditional sweets with fruit-based desserts, milk, nuts, dark chocolate, milk shakes,homemade smoothies and fruit salads, homemade cakes with whole-wheat flour, and other similar healthy options.

* Don’t eat sweets or drink sweetened beverages on an empty stomach.

Let’s hope you will not stand up and run for a sweet snack now. If you’ve read this article and you feel that you simply must grab some snack, choose unsalted nuts instead. If you have any questions or need additional support, please contact our nutrition coaches.

Emilia Górka

Dietician

Holmes Place Poland

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