How to stop eating junk food – we have the secret!
Key points about how to stop eating junk food
- Junk food is often more accessible and convenient than healthy food
- Stock your pantry with healthy snacks so you don't reach for junk food when hungry
- Practising mindfulness may help you to stop eating junk food
- Link healthier eating with a goal you want to achieve
Junk food is a guilty pleasure most of us have indulged in at some point. If junk food seems more appealing to you than healthy food and you want to change that, the good news is, you can.
Accredited Practising Dietitian Shivaun Conn says it's possible to retrain your brain to see healthy food in a different light, which may help you eventually stop eating junk food – or at least, cut back.
Here are a few tips to help you do that…
Find some ‘healthy' junk food options and stop eating the 'bad' junk food
Let’s face it, the appeal of junk food is that it tastes so good. It's also convenient and quick. In order to stop eating junk food, the trick is to replace those convenient but unhealthy options with easy, healthy alternatives.
Healthy junk food seems like an oxymoron, but in practice, it’s about researching healthier convenience or fast food options. Try foods like organic popcorn, dark chocolate or homemade baked goods that contain wholegrains.
Don’t forget that fruit is Mother Nature’s own convenience food. You may not get the same dopamine hit from biting into a crisp apple as you do from munching on a packet of salty chips, but that’s why you’ve done the mindset work first.
Shivaun explains that making nourishing foods more available and easy to reach for is the best way to start making healthier food choices. “If your fridge or pantry is stocked with healthy options, that’s what you’re more likely to eat,” she adds.
She acknowledges that you might still crave a salty hit, but keeping healthy options within easy reach makes it easier to choose them.
In our manage sugar intake: life's great program, our expert dietitian & nutritionist, Lyndi Cohen will show you how easy it is to satisfy your sweet tooth, without all the excessive added sugar. Try the recipes and register for the free program today!
If you want to stop eating junk food, start with your mindset
Humans reach for comfort in different ways and for some of us, that includes reaching for junk food. Shivaun suggests trying to take a look at how you're feeling when you reach for junk food. Are you stressed? Tired? Bored?
Try looking at your feelings in a mindful way and then talk to a professional about those feelings.
Link healthier eating with an outcome or goal you want to achieve
It’s one thing to want to stop eating junk food. It’s another thing altogether to actually make it happen. That’s why Shivaun suggests adding context to the change by linking it to a goal.
As an example, Shivaun says, “If being a role model to your kids is important to you, you can demonstrate this by eating the healthy foods you'd like them to eat. This can be an effective way to introduce those foods to picky eaters too.”
What does this do? It gives you purpose, direction and a sense of meaning. Your goal may be to run a marathon or learn how to cook 10 healthy recipes. Whatever it is, it adds another layer to help you stop eating junk food.
How to get your teenager to stop eating junk food
Teens often love junk food! They go for convenient snacks that taste good and are easy to eat. They're also dealing with hormonal shifts and peer pressure, which may make them more inclined to eat junk food.
Shivaun notes parents who want to encourage their teens to stop eating junk food need to be aware of the language they use around food when speaking with their kids.
“How we talk about food can have a real impact on a teenager," she says. "If we talk about eating naughty food or use negative associations with food and our bodies, this can really influence a teen’s mentality. It’s so important to be careful of language.”
Shivaun says healthy eating for teens is about two key things. Firstly, it’s about making it easy. And secondly, it’s about creating a positive and open culture so your teen can talk to you about how they’re feeling about food and their body.
Shivaun’s recommendations for encouraging healthy eating for teens include:
- Have healthy snacks for kids on hand in the fridge and pantry to make healthy eating accessible.
- Offer your teenager a variety of healthy options to pack in their lunchbox.
- Involve your teenager in the meal preparation or planning to make them more aware of how they’re nourishing their body.
- Talk to your teenager about peer influences and having confidence in their food choices while out with friends.
Once again, don’t underestimate the power of the language you use around food for both yourself and your teen. It could be what makes all the difference.
Get a little help
Seeking professional help can also go a long way to shifting your relationship with food. Shivaun notes that “dietitians can help you to ‘make over’ the foods you already enjoy eating.”
So if you already love cooking lasagne or nachos for your family, she says a dietitian can, “give those dishes a makeover to make them healthier while ensuring they still look and taste good.”
Once you’ve established those habits and you’re eating foods that make you feel better, it’s amazing how quickly your relationship with healthy food will shift.
Related:
- Setting SMART fitness goals you can achieve (with a few examples)
- Building positive friendships to create a healthy, happy life
- How routines can help you achieve health goals
- manage sugar intake: life's great program
Shivaun Conn is an Accredited Practising Dietitian, Accredited Nutritionist and Certified Health Coach with particular interests in nutrition, lifestyle, executive health and health behaviour change.
Reviewed by the healthylife Advisory Board June 2021