--- title: Dessert: Why You Crave It Even When You're Full description: When you eat one type of food, you develop a decreased appetite for that food compared to others with different tastes, textures and colors. canonical: https://time.com/4756244/dessert-sensory-specific-satiety/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-04-28T16:44:48.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T04:37:07.448Z article:section: Health og:title: Here’s Why It Feels Like You Always Have Room for Dessert og:description: We're hardwired to "eat the rainbow" og:url: https://time.com/4756244/dessert-sensory-specific-satiety/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltaccf2f973dc19eee/6988789d5f570f511fb1f244/cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health-motto-stock og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Here’s Why It Feels Like You Always Have Room for Dessert twitter:description: We're hardwired to "eat the rainbow" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltaccf2f973dc19eee/6988789d5f570f511fb1f244/cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Here’s Why It Feels Like You Always Have Room for Dessert by [Cynthia Sass / Health.com](/author/health-com/) ## Cynthia Sass / Health.com Apr 28, 2017 4:44 PM CUT  Molly Cranna for TIME by [Cynthia Sass / Health.com](/author/health-com/) ## Cynthia Sass / Health.com Apr 28, 2017 4:44 PM CUT How many times have you eaten a [well-balanced meal](http://www.health.com/nutrition/balanced-healthy-meal "undefined"), declared yourself full, and then skimmed the dessert menu? Or considered digging into the pint of mint chocolate chip in your freezer? Turns out there’s a scientific reason for this phenomenon. It’s called sensory-specific satiety. Translation: When you eat one type of food, you develop a decreased appetite for that food compared to other foods with different tastes, textures, and colors. Sensory-specific satiety helps explain why it’s oh-so-challenging to avoid overeating at a [buffet](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20707989,00.html "undefined"). It’s also why you always seem to have room for dessert. So if you’re hardwired this way, what can you do to avoid ending a meal feeling _uncomfortably_ full? Here are three techniques to combat your brain’s desire to have it all, so you can maintain a healthy balance: ### **Make variety work for you** Fortunately, eating a variety of foods in one meal is good for you: It’s a smart strategy for creating macronutrient balance (that is, a good balance of protein, fat, and carbs), and exposing your body to a broad spectrum of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Just try to avoid the trap of eating a dinner made up of less-than-healthy choices, followed by dessert. They key is to make each choice a smart one. I recently had a client describe nearly every dinner as a smorgasbord that started with cheese and crackers, followed by bites off her kids’ plates, and a bit of whatever her husband was eating (often with little to no [veggies](http://www.health.com/food/add-more-veggies "undefined"), and sometimes no real sense of how much she’d actually eaten). We worked together to help her start planning actual meals that contained a balanced mix of foods (think chicken, fish, or pulses, [veggies](http://www.health.com/food/add-more-veggies "undefined") sautéed with EVOO and herbs, and a small serving of a whole food starch like [quinoa](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20844296,00.html "undefined") or [sweet potato](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20600272,00.html "undefined")). The result? The she was able to eat a small amount of dessert (or a few squares of dark chocolate), and still lose weight. **_Health.com_**_:_ [_Eating at Night Can Make You Gain Weight, But What If You’re Actually Hungry?_](http://www.health.com/nutrition/what-to-eat-before-bed/?xid=time "undefined") ### **Budget for dessert** If you’re craving [chocolate cake](http://www.health.com/food/microwave-chocolate-mug-cake "undefined"), or you’re going to a restaurant famous for its pastries, keep your entrée simple. Most desserts are high in carbs, so it makes sense to create balance by curbing or [omitting the carbs](http://www.health.com/food/low-carb-substitutes "undefined") in your main meal. At a restaurant, ask for double [veggies](http://www.health.com/nutrition/heres-why-you-should-add-more-veggies-to-your-diet-asap "undefined") on the side, instead of veggies and potatoes. Or opt for a protein appetizer (like shrimp cocktail or chicken skewers) plus a small salad or side of cooked veggies. One of my clients once told me how physically awful she felt after ordering a turkey burger with fries, followed by a slice of warm apple pie. When I asked which was better—the fries or the pie—she said hands down the pie. So we made a plan: Next time she would order a turkey [burger wrapped in lettuce](http://www.health.com/food/low-carb-substitutes "undefined") (no bun), a side of veggies in place of fries, and pie for dessert. She reported back that the combo felt “just right.” She left the restaurant satisfied and energized. **_Health.com_**_:_ [_49 Ways to Trick Yourself Into Feeling Full_](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20979994,00.html/?xid=time "undefined") ### **Pre-think your meal** Planning head is a key way to prevent your subconscious mind from taking the driver’s seat, and making choices that aren’t so great for your body. If you’re going [out to dinner](http://www.health.com/nutrition/7-ways-to-eat-less-when-eating-out "undefined"), look up the menu ahead of time; decide what to order (when you aren’t starving), including whether or not you’ll be having dessert; and stick with your decision once you get to the [restaurant](http://www.health.com/nutrition/7-ways-to-eat-less-when-eating-out "undefined"). If you know you’re having [dessert](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20618002,00.html "undefined"), it’s okay to politely say no when someone asks if you want to split an appetizer, or share a bunch of small plates. And if you decide in advance that you want to enjoy an all out indulgent meal, it’s a conscious choice, rather than an impulse or an emotional reaction. These tweaks aren’t about restriction; they’re about balance, which just feels better, even if you aren’t focused on losing weight. And feeling great while still enjoying your meals is a win-win that’s totally worth a little savvy give and take–with no “diet” mentality necessary. _This_ [_article_](http://www.health.com/nutrition/room-for-dessert/?xid=time "undefined") _originally appeared on_ [_Health.com_](http://www.health.com "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4756244/dessert-sensory-specific-satiety/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4756244/dessert-sensory-specific-satiety/"},"headline":"Here’s Why It Feels Like You Always Have Room for Dessert","datePublished":"2017-04-28T16:44:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T04:37:07.448Z","description":"When you eat one type of food, you develop a decreased appetite for that food compared to others with different tastes, textures and colors.","url":"https://time.com/4756244/dessert-sensory-specific-satiety/","keywords":["Diet & Nutrition","Food & Drink"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltaccf2f973dc19eee/6988789d5f570f511fb1f244/cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Cynthia Sass / Health.com"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltaccf2f973dc19eee/6988789d5f570f511fb1f244/cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health-motto-stock","caption":"cake-dessert-sweets-food-diet-health-motto-stock","creditText":"Molly Cranna for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/dietnutrition/","name":"Diet & Nutrition"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4756244/dessert-sensory-specific-satiety/","name":"Here’s Why It Feels Like You Always Have Room for Dessert"}}]}] ```