Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Understand your addiction
• Method 2 of 3: Consume Chocolate in Moderation
• Method 3 of 3: Eliminate chocolate from your diet

While many people indulge themselves with a sweet chocolate treat from time to time, for some, chocolate addiction becomes a real and very serious problem. If you have a chocolate addiction, you can begin to overcome it by gaining a deeper understanding of the causes and triggers. Once you understand your addiction better, you can deal with it by learning how to eat chocolate in moderation or by cutting chocolate out of your diet if necessary.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Understand your addiction

1. 1 Determine when your chocolate addiction started. To understand and overcome your addiction, first try to find out when you started to increase your consumption of chocolate and constantly resort to it.Even if you have always loved chocolate, consider what was happening in your life at the moment when you started showing signs of addiction (for example, strong cravings and inability to overcome / control your desire) and eat chocolate despite the negative consequences.
   • Addiction often occurs as a side effect or consequence of another problem. For example, you may have started gorging yourself on chocolate to nausea right after you lost your job. From this point on, you will begin to realize what caused the addiction, and this is an important step in order to cope with it on a psychological level.
2. 2 Consider why you are addicted to chocolate. If you don't eat chocolate because it makes you truly happy, you may be using it to compensate for a different feeling. There are many different reasons why people are drawn to food, many of which are associated with negative emotions. If you can identify the causes of overeating, you can develop an action plan to address the problem.
   • To understand why you are addicted to chocolate, try the next time you reach for something chocolate, stop for a few moments and pay attention to your feelings. Ask yourself if you want to eat chocolate because you just want to taste it, or if you need chocolate because you are sad, upset, anxious, or have any other emotion that drives your desire.
   • In other words, practice mindfulness when eating chocolate. This will help you become more aware of your addiction, as well as determine what help you need to cope with it.
3. 3 Write down when and how much chocolate you consume each day. Sometimes it is not easy to determine when cravings started or why they persist. Therefore, it can be helpful to keep a daily log book and record when you feel the urge, when you indulge your desires, and how much chocolate you consume each time. This will help you not only be honest with yourself about your addiction, but also identify all the patterns in your cravings for consuming chocolate.
   • For example, after a few months of observation, you may find that you crave chocolate and indulge yourself with it much more often during certain times of the year. This will likely reveal that your addiction is a side effect of seasonal depression.
   • You may find that chocolate addiction worsens during your period or during periods of emotional, psychological, or physical stress.
4. 4 Talk to your doctor to understand your addiction. Whatever the reason, having a chocolate addiction can significantly affect our physical, mental and emotional health. This is why it can be helpful to speak with your doctor to better understand the cause of addiction and develop a plan to overcome it.
   • Mental health professionals can help you gain a deeper understanding of your addiction and deal with its root cause, which in turn can help you overcome your cravings.
   • A therapist or dietitian can help you determine the physical effects of addiction on your body, and can help you develop a diet and exercise plan that can both reduce your cravings and reverse the negative effects.

Method 2 of 3: Consume Chocolate in Moderation

1. 1 Make it a goal to limit your chocolate consumption. To overcome addiction and learn to consume chocolate in moderation, try setting a limit on how much sweet you eat each day or week. Once you've set your limit, plan to buy only the scheduled amount of chocolate so you don't be tempted to overuse it.
   • For example, set a goal for yourself to consume no more than 60 grams of chocolate a day.
2. 2 Opt for dark chocolate over white or milk. If you're struggling with addiction but don't want to completely cut chocolate out of your diet, choose a dark variety instead of white or dairy when indulging your desires. Dark chocolate provides more health benefits than white or milk chocolate, making it a healthier option.
   • The cocoa in chocolate provides health benefits. Milk and white chocolate contains less cocoa than dark chocolate due to additives such as milk and sugar.
   • Cocoa is high in flavonoid antioxidants that help fight cardiovascular disease, improve vascular function and lower blood pressure.
   • Plus, because dark chocolate is less sweet and richer in flavor, you're less likely to overeat.
3. 3 Eat chocolate with fruits or nuts. To reduce and control your intake, choose chocolate-covered fruits or nuts, or a blend of all three ingredients. This will help you replenish healthy nutrients while limiting the amount of chocolate you absorb.
4. 4 Add more magnesium to your diet to reduce chocolate cravings. If you feel the urge to eat chocolate, try other high-magnesium foods, such as nuts, seeds, whole grains, and leafy vegetables, instead. When the body needs magnesium, it can trigger an irresistible craving for chocolate. If you substitute other high-magnesium foods for chocolate, your urges will likely fade away.
   • Magnesium is an essential macronutrient that helps the body regulate muscle and nervous system function, as well as blood sugar and blood pressure.
   • Taking magnesium is especially helpful for curbing chocolate cravings during your period.
5. 5 Fill your diet with healthier foods. If you're trying to cut back on your chocolate intake to overcome your addiction, try increasing your portions of healthy foods. Often times, people with a chocolate addiction deliberately eat less during meals to make room for dessert. If you eat large portions of wholesome food, you may find that you are too full to eat a lot of chocolate, or that your cravings have subsided for a while.
6. 6 Limit your consumption of sweets on holidays and special occasions. To cope with chocolate addiction, do not use holidays and special occasions as an excuse to indulge your weaknesses. While some people can afford it, it can make your addiction stronger or bring it back.
   • If you are offered a chocolate treat at a festive meal, remember to limit your intake and use the same approach you use to curb addiction in your daily life.

Method 3 of 3: Eliminate chocolate from your diet

1. 1 Get rid of all chocolate in your home and workplace. Throw away or give away any leftover chocolate you have and do not buy it in the future. If you know that you have a chocolate addiction and need to eliminate this product from your diet for mental or physical health reasons, one of the first steps is to eliminate any sources of chocolate from your life. If you have quick access to the source of the addiction, it will be much more difficult for you to overcome it.
2. 2 Come up with a mantra to remind yourself why you need to quit this habit. When we are addicted, we often easily convince ourselves that we need chocolate for a specific reason, or that we are just about to indulge ourselves one last time. Developing a personal mantra will help you overcome these mental obstacles by reminding you why you need to overcome addiction and convincing you that you can do it.
   • When you feel a craving or when faced with a situation where you are offered chocolate, tell yourself, "I don't need this to be happy."
   • It can also be helpful to come up with a simple mantra that you can say out loud, such as, "I don't eat this." In this way, you are not just making a reminder to yourself. Saying this out loud may make you feel responsible to everyone who heard you.
3. 3 Find a sweet new snack. Often chocolate addiction is a special case of sugar addiction. So if you take chocolate out of your diet to overcome your addiction, you may be able to replace it with a natural sweet snack to satisfy your sugar cravings.
   • Fresh fruit, for example, is a great alternative. Although they are also high in sugars, they saturate better than chocolate and are more nutritious. This makes the fruit a more satisfying and healthy sweet snack.
4. 4 Go for a walk when you feel the thrust coming. In the process of overcoming addiction, it can be helpful to have activities that will distract you while your cravings fade away. For example, a brisk 20-30 minute walk will distract you from the feeling that you need chocolate and will trigger a rush of endorphins that will lessen the urge to indulge in chocolate cravings.
5. 5 When tempted to eat chocolate, do something that makes you happy. For chocolate addicts, cravings often occur when they are stressed, sad, or overstrained. Therefore, to get rid of the urge, it will be beneficial to do something that makes you happy. Then it will be possible to deal with the cause or provoking factors, which, in turn, will make the cravings fade away.
   • For example, if you are having a bad day and you feel an overwhelming urge to indulge yourself in chocolate, do not give in to it, but rather try calling a friend to help you cheer up. Talking to a friend who will cheer you up will likely make you feel better and decrease your desire to eat chocolate.
   • Playing a hobby you love, such as knitting, painting, or playing the piano, will also make you happy and help you resist temptation.
6. 6 Reward yourself for avoiding chocolate. To stay motivated to overcome addiction, reward yourself every time you can successfully avoid temptation. Even small weekly rewards can play a huge role in keeping you on track.
   • For example, for every week of chocolate avoidance, try rewarding yourself with spa treatments, bubble baths, or going to the movies. You will start to look forward to the weekly reward, which will help you stay motivated and stay away from chocolate.