For example; if someone who was unaware they were low in iron developed cravings for a steak, or spinach, is the reason they are craving those foods because they’re lacking in iron?
I think there may be some truth to this. I read about a certain type of deer (?) where they go out of their way to lick some salt rocks. And it seems they would crave this when their body needs the mineral
To a degree yes. This is where “intuitive eating” comes in. Your body does know what it needs. Also if someone is lets say low in carbs or didn’t have enough calories throughout the day, they will naturally crave what they lacked and what their body needs at night. This is why people who starve or deprive themselves of carbs end up binging.
Speaking as a dietetic intern
I think there are cravings but to in-depth to be studied and we just lack the techniques and technology to do so. Science in the nutrition field is a hard place that’s just to influenced these days. I feel like it was better understood before fake YouTube influences and funded studies by companies.
I do agree with not meeting sugar requirements for the day. If glycogen isn’t full you always have that hunting/craving sensation and tend to always thing about food lol
No, in large part they don’t. You can learn to discern a few important things. If you go low carb you learn some new tricks, and can discern the need for protein pretty clearly from other oscillations.
I bet iron is a pretty salient one. There are conditions that cause people to eat dirt - you could look up “pica”. But mostly we crave calories and sodium. Notably lacking is any useful sense of potassium levels, which the body must somehow keep roughly balanced with your sodium intake, or all your cells would collapse or something.
You certainly do train your intuition a bit; Pavlovian conditioning and some other models apply to an extent. Maybe after iron, you might get a sense for some of the B vitamins. The system only has to get us there; it doesn’t have to keep levels optimum.
Severe iron deficiency can result in Pica.. where one will be eating or craving for non-food stuffs like ice, stone, sand, chalk….
Some studies have also described that lack of protein in diet can lead to foraging behavior in animals.Inadequate protein or essential amino acids in diet can make you crave for protein-rich foods.
https://www.asianscientist.com/2021/06/health/gut-hormone-protein-cravings/
No.
Look at it like this as well.
What if you’re low in iron, but, have never eaten steak before? You obviously wouldn’t start craving steak as you don’t even know what it is.
Cravings are mainly mental driven by physiological factors such as stress and poor sleep.