Short Tips for Junking Junk Foods

Eat while working, watching television, or doing other activities is often addictive in nature. The person may not even fully experience the taste, smell, and texture of the food as it's eaten. When you are eating to satisfy your soul rather than your stomach, you often end up eating too much of the wrong foods like junk foods. Here are good tips for junking junk food. 

- A Practice defensive shopping. That is, resist buying sugary snack foods as a first step toward cutting your consumption. Once those cookies, cupcakes, and candies are sitting in your cupboards, they are much harder to say no to. Many people succumb to the rationalization, "Well, I'll just finish the package and then I won't buy any more." Cut junk foods off at the source, taking the opportunity instead to load up at the supermarket on the fresh fruits, popcorn, and other foods you'll be substituting for them.

- Keeping your kitchen stocked with pizza dough, tortillas, grated cheese, salad greens, fresh vegetables, and assorted leftovers will help you fight the urge to go out for fast food, notes Mollie Katzen, natural-foods cook and author of Still Life With Menu. "Pizzas, polentas, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, enhanced ramens, sautéed or broiled breads, and giant cheese-filled biscuits are all very easy dishes that can readily be expanded into full-blown meals," she says.

- Cut back on your fast-food intake by planning your shopping trips and other excursions so that you can eat at home before you go.

- Rinse your mouth, brush your teeth, or eat a hard vegetable such as a carrot after eating a sticky, sugary food to prevent tooth decay.

- Drink some water before you eat any junk food. You'll be less hungry and the water itself is healthful.

- Eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Skipping meals can cause wide swings in your blood sugar levels that make you more subject to cravings, binges, and high-fat snacking. Plus, if you eat breakfast, your body responds by burning more calories than if you skip it.