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Here's exactly how to control your appetite and those late afternoon or night cravings

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Fighting a food craving is an arduous task but it can be done.
Fighting a food craving is an arduous task but it can be done.

Yup – we’re talking hunger (and mind) games… Your belly isn’t the only body part dictating how much you nosh – your brain’s got a say too.

Research offers up three mental tricks to silence that tummy rumble, aka control appetite and cravings.

1. Eat and believe

It sounds kind of weird, but research in the journal Appetite, found that just thinking a food will be filling makes it so. Recalling past satisfaction from eating it can affect how full you feel now.

READ MORE: These are the top 10 power foods that will keep you fuller for longer

2. Shut the front door

Or menu, or cookie jar or anything, really. Science shows that the very act of putting something away can give you a sense of closure and make whatever you’re eating hit the spot.

READ MORE: Here’s exactly how to use meal prep to lose weight

3. No Instagramming between meals

The constant social-media barrage of food may be stoking hunger. According to research, our brains evolved to expect a hit of energy from simply seeing grub.

This article was originally published on Women's Health

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