Erin O'Hara: Naturopath and wellness expert on how to deal with Easter chocolate cravings

Another Easter weekend means there's more hot cross buns, chocolate eggs, and other sweet treats that can add to the afternoon cravings.

Many people experience a predictable 2–4 PM craving window, and it’s not just about blood sugar - with the brain's reward system calling out for dopamine and energy.

Naturopath and wellness expert Erin O'Hara explained further.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudkin
from News Talks. I'd be righty home.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
It is time to talk wellness. Erin O'Hara joins us.

Speaker 3 (00:15):
Now, good morning, good morning.

Speaker 2 (00:17):
I'm not entirely sure that this topic was probably well
thought through for Easter. Maybe next weekend it would have
been ideal, but look, it's always worth us been able
to start to think about it, how we can tackle
the afternoon of sugar craving, because I'm sure there'll be
a few today.

Speaker 3 (00:33):
Yeah, and maybe it's something you start next week, half.

Speaker 2 (00:35):
Days a week exactly, but you know, you know, it's
worth talking about because I think many of us skeept
to and whether it's a sugar craving or just a
snack craving of some sort, whether you want cheese on
cracks or something, there is a each one of us
sort of has a point in the day where we
start looking around, going what can I nimble on?

Speaker 3 (00:53):
Yeah, it's usually that carbohydrate that people are looking for,
and usually somewhere in that window between two and four
as you get that glok where blood glue cose level
drop off, and that mind says me, sugar must be sugar,
must be something carbohydrate, and that's where you're kind of
rummaging through the cupboard looking for something to eat, even

(01:14):
when maybe you're not even that hungry. And it's actually
more likely to happen after you've had a lot of sugar.
So if you've had lots of Easter buns this weekend
as well as Easter eggs, then leading into this week ahead,
you might have a problem with some afternoon sugar crashes.
And the main reason we do get these sugar crashes
or sugar cravings in the afternoon is because the blood

(01:37):
sugar level dips in the afternoon, and naturally when we
get that, we're looking for something that will give me
a quick pick me up, which is never something like
protein or vegetable sticks or apple will never satisfy a
sugar craving at three o'clock in the afternoon. So that's
really the main reason that people will get the sugar
cravings is that afternoon energy drop or blood sugar drop. Also,

(02:01):
it can be to do a Cicadian rhythm, so we've
also last night just had daylight saving as well, so
sometimes although this change over with the extra hour sleep
as she works in our favor because we're less likely
to be afternoon tired in that two to four window
because we've actually had an extra hour's sleep. Well might
feel like an extra hour sleep, but it can be

(02:21):
that we haven't had enough sleep or we need to
rebalance our sleep cycle, and we're getting that energy crash
in the afternoon. And the other big one is stressed.
If you've had a really stressful day, then we get
to that afternoon lull and we're looking for a way
to kind of pack me up, give you that feel
good vibe, and give you the energy to keep going
through today.

Speaker 2 (02:40):
So if nothing else is going to satisfy it, then
how do we get rid of it? In the first place.

Speaker 3 (02:45):
It's all about how you set up the day, and
actually what you do in the morning half of the
day is going to affect you for the afternoon half
of the day. So looking at eating a balanced breakfast
and lunch, and that means it needs to have a
good amount of protein in it as well as fiber,
because they're going to help you regulate your glucose level

(03:06):
throughout the whole day. So if you've done that through
your breakfast and your lunch, you're setting yourself up for
a great afternoon ahead where your energy won't dip as
much for the afternoon. The other thing is staying hydrated.
Sometimes if we've not had much hydration and water through
the day, we're actually get that energy drop off in
the afternoon, and we think we need sugar because that's

(03:28):
what our brain's telling us, but actually we're actually needing water,
which is actually something that we're getting that q wrong
in what we're Our mind's telling us one thing, but
actually what our body needs is something different. Also, how
you're managing your stress sivils through the day, so we're
not kind of needing that big serotonin dopamine hit from

(03:48):
the sugar that actually gives you that pick me up.
So if we're regulating our stress through the day, that
can be helpful. And then also having healthy snacks on
hand is always helpful, because if you don't have any
healthy snacks, particularly if you're at work, then you go
to the vending machine, and probably nothing in the vending
machine is that great for you. So even if you're
looking for the healthiest option in there, maybe there's a

(04:10):
packet of nuts, generally there's not much there that's sort
of healthy snack version there, so making sure you've gotten
your bags to go to work or to go to school,
go to after school activities, making sure you've got seeds
or nuts or piece of fruits, so something that'll really
give you that good regulation through the afternoon and pick

(04:30):
your energy up

Speaker 1 (04:31):
To For more from the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin,
listen live to news talks there'd be from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.