You lead a healthy lifestyle, exercise regularly and keep away from smoking and alcohol. However, you have certain food habits, such as, gorging on pizza four times a week or feeding off a drawer full of chocolates before you go to bed, which you find hard to let go. Read on to find out what kind of unhealthy food junkie you are, and how you can cut future health risks:

Junk food craver

Fast food, such as, burgers, pizzas and vada pavs are easy to eat, yummy meals. However, they come loaded with saturated fat, sodium and calories. An average slice of pizza, for example, is approximately 250 calories.

Try a whole-wheat wrap, instead, stuff it with veggies, paneer or chicken, and layer it with tomato sauce. Put it in the oven for a few minutes and pair it with a green salad. For burgers, choose a low calories sauce such as mustard over other fatty dressings. Instead of deep fried potato or a meat patty, go for baked/ grilled vegetable or chicken patty with salad.

Sugar Addict

So you find yourself addicted to sugar and always have three bars of chocolate stacked at your desk? Attempts at substituting them with sugar-free candies and diet sodas won’t help as they can actually make you gain more weight. According to nutritionists, sugar contains empty calories and has no essential nutrients. If you want to get to the root of the issue, analyse at what time and why you are craving sugary foods.

For most people, the 3 pm sugar craving is a result of skipping lunch or eating a low calorie lunch without enough protein and complex carbohydrates. Make sure you have a balanced meal comprising chapatti or rice, green veggies, legumes, paneer or chicken. Replace diet colas with coconut water, which contains zero calories and is rich in potassium.

Salt Lover

Salt adds to taste. But if you find yourself adding salt to already high-salt foods like macaroni or cheese and even green leafy veggies, yours is an extreme case which needs attention. Table salt is refined salt, which contains about 97 to 99 per cent sodium chloride.

Consuming large amount of sodium can result in bloating. Experts recommend limiting sodium to less than 2,300 mg (approximately a teaspoon) a day. If you are over 51 years, your intake should be even less. If you crave something salty, look for salt free seasoning options for cooking, such as pepper, red pepper flakes and lemon.

Late-Night Snacker

On any given day, you return home from work, eat dinner, Facebook, play angry birds, check email, watch TV and finally end up snacking again. Late night refrigerator raids don’t usually involve carrots and cucumbers. It’s more like candies, chocolates, ice-creams and cheese. And most people eat out of boredom rather than hunger. Ideally, you should stop eating three hours before you go to bed.

The body’s metabolism slows down after 7 pm and starts storing food as fat instead of burning it. This also helps prevents gastrointestinal issues like indigestion and acid. Consuming dinner rich in protein and fibres helps you feel more satisfied till late night. After dinner, indulge yourself in reading or listening to music rather then watching mindless TV. Since you won’t feel bored, you are less likely to binge.

Carbo-Fever

Do you crave white bread and rice for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Eating too many refined carbs, such as, french fries, white bread, and cakes, can lead to weight gain. Refined carbs get absorbed in the blood stream instantly and lead to a spike in insulin levels. Since they also get digested quickly, the spike in insulin is followed by a crash, making you feel hungry soon after.

Instead of cutting out carbs altogether, mix non-starchy foods such as, veggies, into your carb dishes. If you love rice, reduce it by half and add broccoli, beans, spinach or asparagus to your diet. This will cut calories, boost the fibre intake and keep you feeling full for longer.

Non-stop binger

Eating small meals throughout the day ups metabolism and keeps hunger at bay. However, if you are skipping breakfast or lunch entirely, and relying only on snacks (which may be healthy) to get through the day, you might be in trouble. Skipping meals can lead you to snack in large portions.

Even if you are sticking to healthier choices like wheat crackers, yogurt and fruit, brown bread sandwiches, dry fruits and almonds, you may be adding 600-800 calories at one go. Make it four times a day and you will be consuming a good 2400-3200 calories, which is nearly 600 to 1,000 calories more than normal. The key to healthy snacking is never skipping your meals and having a combination of carbohydrate and protein rich snacks in between.