Food cravings are best managed than manhandled, and there are an array of strategies to make sure they don't ride shotgun in your life.

Allure delved into the idiosyncrasies of The Craving -- here are a few suggestions to properly manage that urge for chocolate, chips and ice cream:

• One survey found people crave foods related to happy memories. So when you're happy, eat spinach?
  I don't think that would work for me. But cravings are reinforced by habit, so try to trip-up your typical post-dinner cookie grab by waiting 15 to 30 minutes.
  
• 18-to-35-year-old women are especially prone to cravings. If you fall in this category, don't worry, you're not alone.
• Don't quash a craving. In one study, women who were told not to talk about chocolate ate nearly one and half times as much chocolate as women allowed to talk openly.
• Focus on managing cravings. Research shows cravings don't go away, even for those on a restricted diet. One expert says people who lose weight have cravings, but they get better at managing them. Giving in less often is a solid strategy.

If a craving brings you to your knees, don't consider yourself a failure. That attitude can lead to more eating. Accept the fact you just scarfed a giant bowl of ice cream -- then move on and get moving to help burn calories

Source

If you're feeling hungry, you may want to take a moment to do a reality check. True hunger comes from the stomach, but as this Time.com slide show points out, there are several other triggers that may make you feel like eating, like:

• time of day
• the sight and smell of foods you like
• craving variety (which is why you may reach for something sweet, even after a big meal)
• drinking alcohol
• being cold (maybe that's why I gain weight every winter!)
• eating refined carbs

Regularly eating when you aren't hungry is a surefire way to add inches to your waistline. The next time the thought of food enters your head, make sure that you're truly hungry and not being tricked into eating by one of these triggers.

Source

Do you have those cravings for things when you just are not that hungry? We all have had that feeling before. Call it a "craving" or whatever you'd like.

Is it healthy for the waistline? Not likely, as cravings generally aren't for healthy foods. Cravings I still have to this day include ice cream. Mentally beating that back is a challenge in and of itself. What can we do to fight the cravings...for everything? Ediets has a nine-step list that may be able to help:

1. Exercise.
2. Get a massage.
3. Read biographies of people who inspire you.
4. Use guided imagery.
5. Listen to relaxing music.
6. Take a bath with aromatherapy.
7. Laugh.
8. Get a pet and love it.
9. Find a passion.

Source