Ever been going about your day and suddenly get a craving for a salty snack? While you might think this craving is just a sign of your body being hungry but it’s more than that. Your salty cravings can stem from many different reasons. They could also be a symptom of underlying health conditions.
Salt is essential to human bodies for survival. It aids in many body functions, like controlling our muscles and even maintaining fluid balance. While too much salt will be harmful to our bodies, too little salt will also be unhealthy.
Let’s not ignore your salty cravings and explore their underlying reason!
- Dehydration: When your body gets dehydrated, it can lead to high or low sodium levels. Salt contains sodium, which is a vital mineral and electrolyte in body fluids. These low sodium levels can lead to salty cravings.
- Stress: If you are someone whose stress levels are through the roof, chances are you crave salty food more than others. When stress levels rise, the body wants to eat its comfort food by giving in to a salty craving. Eating this triggers the body’s reward system and reduces its stress response to relieve symptoms of stress.
- Excessive sweating: When one sweats too much, regardless of the activity, their sodium levels decrease. This happens due to a loss of salt through the sweat. You can sip on sports drinks, which contain electrolytes to regain energy.
- Lack of sleep: People who don’t get enough sleep may have a craving for snacks with high “satisfaction levels,” such as salty, crunchy foods.
- Boredom: If you start binging because of boredom, then you have an emotional eating behaviour. This leads them to indulge in salty, processed snacks. In such cases, it is best to opt for natural and less processed snacks.
- Premenstrual syndrome (PMS): Changes in your appetite during PMS are very normal. Your salty craving for food is common, and you have nothing to worry about!