What Are Your 4 PM Cravings Trying To Tell You?

You swore you wouldn’t snack today. Lunch was decent. But by 4 pm, you’re hovering near the fridge again, reaching for something sweet, salty or carbohydrate-rich, and then beating yourself up for not having more willpower.

But here’s what science (and many nutritionists) want you to know: cravings aren’t a moral failure. They’re often the result of a body that’s out of balance, especially when it comes to blood sugar, hormones like cortisol, and the state of your nervous system.

In my practice, I rarely see cravings that are just about habit or discipline, a Metabolic Health Coach who works with clients struggling with fatigue, weight gain and Prediabetes. Once we stabilise their meal rhythm and bring stress down, the cravings reduce drastically, often without needing willpower at all.

Blood sugar rollercoaster

One of the most common causes of cravings is unstable blood sugar. Meals that are high in refined carbohydrates and low in protein, like toast with jam, or a bowl of poha with sweetened tea, can cause blood sugar to spike and then crash. That crash is what creates the sudden, urgent need to eat again.

It’s not about being greedy. It’s your body trying to bring blood sugar back to a safe level. And the brain, desperate for energy, often demands something fast-acting like sugar.

A client who couldn’t understand why her evening chocolate craving was so intense. “We simply added a better lunch: a balance of dal, paneer sabzi, millet roti and raita and the evening crash stopped completely in just a few days.”

Stress changes your hunger hormones

Cravings also tend to rise when you’re stressed. That’s because of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone, which is designed to help you survive threats. But in modern life, threats look more like missed deadlines, skipped meals or poor sleep, and cortisol can stay elevated for too long.

Cortisol increases your appetite, makes you store fat and throws off dopamine, the feel-good brain chemical that helps you feel satisfied. You’re left constantly looking for comfort, and food is the easiest way to get it.

This is why cravings often show up after a tough meeting or a bad night’s sleep, not just when you’re hungry, but when you’re emotionally depleted.

To reduce cortisol and its effect on cravings, try building short, consistent breaks into your day. A 10-minute walk between meetings, five deep belly breaths before lunch, or even putting your phone down while eating can start to shift cortisol levels. Sleep matters too, not just how much, but how regularly. And meals help more when they’re eaten calmly, not on the run.

Stress isn’t going away, but we can teach the body to come down from it. Cravings lose their urgency when the nervous system feels supported.

Nervous system might be overstimulated

Some cravings have little to do with hunger and everything to do with how steady or safe your body feels. When your nervous system is stuck in high alert from mental overload, background noise, poor sleep or constant notifications, the body starts scanning for relief. Cravings can show up not because you’re hungry, but because you’re dysregulated.

Before we look at cutting cravings, I ask clients to check: Are you rested? Have you paused today? Is your system asking for food or for a break?

Not every craving needs a food solution. These small shifts activate the parasympathetic nervous system, the part responsible for rest, digestion and repair.

And when true hunger is part of the picture, a warm, grounding meal can help stabilise both blood sugar and emotional state. But food isn’t always the fix. Sometimes, your body is asking for quiet, not a samosa.

Bottom line

Cravings aren’t just about what you eat. They’re about how your body is doing overall: physically, hormonally, and emotionally.

When you meet your body’s needs, “you don’t have to fight cravings. They stop fighting you.”

(Madhavi Shilpi, Metabolic Health Coach)