The Secret To Curbing Your Cravings Involves A Single Raisin

There's a new wacky solution to your carb cravings — which, by the way, might not have even been a problem in the first place. One dietitian is suggesting you grab a single raisin and enthusiastically savor it for several maniacal minutes.

Nutrition expert Leslie Korn, Ph.D., recently told the New York Post about the craving-crusher she swears by: eating a single raisin. The story is trending — so clickable! — and we know why: It's undoubtedly a genius hack from a seasoned health expert. Just eat a raisin and you'll forget all about that gooey, melting-in-the-middle chocolate chip cookie waiting in your snack stash! The key is to focus really hard on that raisin.

Korn advises that you pick up the raisin and observe it closely before actually placing it in your mouth. Feel for its texture and observe the dips and grooves of the wrinkled, dry fruit. Maybe even smell it — if you're up for the thrill.

This is perfect if you work a nine-to-five. Surely, your coworkers won't mind you gazing longingly at tiny snack item for a minute between tasks — they might even be tempted to try it, too. You and the raisin have a new love affair, and already you can feel it rescuing you from your longings for dessert.

Next, place the raisin in your mouth. Move your tongue across its tiny surface, enjoying the exquisite feel of food between your teeth. But wait! Don't chew just yet. Savor.

Okay, now you can chew. Look at the clock. Have two minutes gone by yet? If not, Korn thinks you're going a bit too fast. Slow the process down a bit, chew with purpose. This is your one snack, you're talking about here — you're going to want it to last.

Once your chewing has sustained as long as physically possible, swallow and sit still for a minute as the raisin travels down your throat and drops like a pin in your vacant stomach.

"Finally," Korn says, "ask yourself, 'What does my body really need?'"

If you think this is a joke, think again. This is real advice from a Harvard-trained health expert — sucking on wrinkly, scraggly raisins until our biological desires disappear. Does a healthy America really involve all of us keeping covert stashes of raisins in our desk drawers?

"The raisin exercise couples our awareness with our ability to exert control over our 'automatic' reactions," Korn told the Post. But the reality is, the only way to truly gain control over your cravings is to listen to them. As relaxing as mindfully eating the raisin might be, suppressing an urge to eat is the opposite of what mindful eating intended. For more dieting myths we have to stop believing, click here.