Food Cravings 2

It is now my opinion that craving is the "modern natural default condition". The only variation is what we are craving. We are being trained to want "stuff" and to fulfill those desires. Before WWII the traditional training in to suppress the desires, at least when possible. Reading the Stoics, and various historic family records, a pent up desire of some kind seems to be the driving force behind so many of my ancestors, some achieved and satisfied those desires, some did not.

Often the desire was more education, more knowledge, and as I look back on my life, that to was present and active. The difficulty I had was making a great deal of money off my knowledge. I wanted to do the work, not get a bunch of half-twits and heard cats. Anyone who has run a technical knowledge based business will know exactly what I mean. At a result, I made a living, and did not get rich, but also had time to learn much, and was professionally competent in my little area of expertise. (geotechnical materials; much math, statistics, testing, measurement, analysis of soils, foundations, concrete, asphalt, and related materials, including industrial and human waste, geotextile design and applications, and forensic analysis of any of the above)

Anyway, back to cravings. There are a number broad sources or causes, environmental, physiological, psychological, and philosophical. I use philosophical here at a personal level, almost psychological level, much as the old stoics did. One idea can eliminate a whole bunch of crap. We have been trained by our culture to crave, and satisfy the cravings. Do you remember hearing of the through away society in the late 60's?  The stoics acknowledged the cravings, and did what reason told them was right. Getting the knowledge that they were right, and virtue was on there side, gave them the passion to overcome desire. "I did everything right, the fault must lie elsewhere"... type of attitude. It is human nature to crave. Learning to direct the passion, the motivation to action, may be the method of overcoming desires. This is similar to keeping so busy that I do not have time to eat.

But what do I know?       

Food Cravings

So what causes food cravings, and how does one get rid of them?
I have talked about this before, and there is a lot of chit chat, possible causes, partial causes, but after I remove all the usual suspects, I am still left with cravings. So WTF, does no one understand these damn cravings?

The usually causes, to much carbohydrates, hyperpalatablity, endorphins, exocannopioids, have all been removed and the cravings remain. Are these just my natural state?

The net shows not much. This is a sampling of what the net shows. Blah. blah. blah. blah....
Then we have true but useless information like this http://addiction-dirkh.blogspot.ca/2014/01/drug-craving-or-how-to-be-your-own.html .
Then we have the illusion of a cure like http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/the-facts-about-food-cravings  but these are carbohydrate induced cravings.
more blah http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/craving/201304/5-facts-about-food-cravings-you-shouldn-t-ign
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_craving

Then there are books around like

Craving: Why We Can't Seem to Get Enough - Omar Manejwala

Turning to the Classics: Socrates, one interpretation--- On Justice

Indignation and appetite have to be subordinated to reason but not by force or suppression, instead, they must be shaped by education so as to be receptive to appropriate rational decisions, with spirited indignation trained to support the rule of reason rather than rebel against it, and the appetites pruned to avoid excessive indulgence going beyond what reason prescribes. The result of the other is to enslave the best part of him to the worst.

Perhaps it is back to spuds and eggs, beef and cabbage, beef and cabbage. All else is not food.