You've been told way too often to resist cravings. You know: "When cookies call, munch on carrots. When ice cream screams, scoop up some cottage cheese." Yeah, right. Better advice: When you've just gotta have it, give in -- but eat the healthiest version of whatever it is you're lusting after. And try to buy a single portion so there are no leftovers to tempt you the next day when the crisis has passed.

Some yummy options: 
If Only Chocolate Will Do
Go For: Hershey's Antioxidant Milk Chocolate or Dove Dark Chocolate Singles (1.3 oz. bars)
Why: You'll be feasting on flavonols -- the compounds that make dark chocolate so heart-healthy. Dove and other dark chocolates have flavonols naturally, but Hershey's recently added them to its milk chocolate bar for those who prefer moo juice in their candy. Bonus: Both come in at under 200 calories, while other popular candy bars push the 300-calorie mark.
 
If Only Real Ice Cream Will Do
Go For: Blue Bunny Personals Double Strawberry Light or a small cone at Dairy Queen
Why: The portions are perfect. A container of Blue Bunny Personals holds just a single cup -- technically two servings, but at 200 calories and 4 grams of fat, you can polish it off in one sitting without guilt. If you want the ice cream–stand experience, a small soft-serve Dairy Queen chocolate or vanilla cone will lick your craving for 230 to 240 calories and 7 to 8 grams of fat.

If Only Cookies Will Do
Go For: Nabisco 100% Whole Grain Fig Newtons Minis   
Why: They contain whole grains, fiber, vitamin A -- you even get calcium without having to dunk them in milk. Each 130-calorie packet of eight cookies delivers 150 milligrams of the mighty mineral -- about as much as 4 ounces of skim milk. The only drawback: They're sold in six-packs, so share the extras with fellow cookie-cravers.

If Only a Doughnut Will Do
Go For: Entenmann's Softee Plain Donut Singles or Krispy Kreme's Whole Wheat Glazed
Why: At 180 calories, the whole-wheat doughnut appears to be one of the skinniest, healthiest options sold individually. Plus, Krispy Kreme recently stopped stuffing its doughnuts with scary trans fat. Entenmann's doughnuts, too, are free of trans fat, though, for mysterious reasons, the "singles" come two to a pack -- so share one with a friend and you'll eat only 170 calories each.
   
If Only Pie Will Do
Go For: A slice of pumpkin or blueberry
Why: Choose pumpkin and you'll get a serving of veggies (thanks to the pumpkin, which is packed with vitamin A) and quite a bit of calcium (courtesy of evaporated milk) for about 230 calories, no matter which brand you buy. Remember: Just fork over the cash for a slice, not the whole deep dish. If you can handle 270 or so calories, blueberry pie is a healthy alternative -- the berries are chock-full of cancer-fighting antioxidants.

If Only Chips Will Do
Go For: A 1.1 oz. bag of Baked Lays
Why: Even though they're totally free of saturated and trans fat -- few other brands can claim that -- they taste good. So good that you need to buy the 130-calorie single-serve bag. With the family size, it's practically impossible to stop crunching till you get to the bottom of the bag.

The payoff for indulging like a smart cookie? Avoiding saturated and trans fats -- which most of the above snacks do completely, and even the few exceptions aren't outrageous -- can make your RealAge more than 4 years younger.

Got the midnight munchies?  Check out the best snacks for late-night attacks.

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School’s in full swing, and for a lot of parents, the most challenging school-year task isn't picking up the kids from choir practice or hunting down the perfect winter coat (how many have you looked at?). It's packing lunches. Weeks and weeks of lunches.

Why bother? Because so many school cafeterias still serve meals that are fat and sugar fiestas -- the kind that are producing high blood pressure in kids as young as 11, says pediatrician Jennifer Trachtenberg, MD, author of Good Kids, Bad Habits: The RealAge Guide to Raising Healthy Children.

So if you can pack a healthy lunch most days, it's worth it -- and not just for your kids' bodies, but also for their grades. A midday fuel-up that includes whole grains, fiber, and protein (a combo that digests gradually) supplies the brain with a steady stream of energy -- the exact opposite of the sugar rush and follow-up energy crash that high-carb junk foods produce in kids.

The trick, of course, is to create nutritious but delicious lunches that kids will eat, not toss or trade. How?
• First, get them to pitch in -- if they help choose the contents, they're more likely to chow down.
• Second, don't worry about every lunch being a perfectly balanced meal. "If your child's intake over the course of a week, on most weeks, is overall balanced, it's fine," says Dr. Jen.
• Third, ask them to bring home anything they don't eat (baby carrots, half a sandwich) -- no guilt trips! It's a good way to judge what works at lunchtime -- and what doesn't.

As for creative ideas, we've got a bunch, including several Dr. Jen has devised for her own three kids. Print them out and post on the fridge for instant a.m. inspiration.

Add fun with shapes: For young ones, use large cookie cutters to make star-shaped sandwiches on birthdays, ghosts at Halloween, and snowmen in December.

Make do-it-yourself stacks: Forget those highly processed lunch kits from the deli section. Put whole-wheat crackers, a favorite cheese or two, and lean meat in separate bags; add a mustard packet, and let kids make their own snack stacks.

Pack an edible forest: Vegetables are much more fun when they're really broccoli "trees," carrot "logs," bell-pepper-strip "canoes," cherry tomato "boulders," and cucumber-slice "bridges," all ready to dunk into salsa, hummus, or an herbed yogurt dip.

Make it brunch: There's nothing wrong with a box of multigrain cereal, a container of berries, and a thermos of milk for lunch if that's what your kid really wants. Says Dr. Jen: "Most kids tend to hate at least one thing -- say green beans -- and devour tons of another, like their favorite cereal. Don't worry; it will pass."

Change up the bread: For a kid with a sweet tooth, how about low-fat cream cheese with apple slices on cinnamon-raisin bread? For an adventurous teen, try turkey and cheddar on rye with chutney.

Make quick kebabs: The healthy-food gurus/parents at EatingWell suggest threading wooden skewers with cubes of turkey, low-fat cheese, grapes, and dried apricots. Wrap individually in tight plastic.

Stuff it: Cut whole-wheat pitas in half, line them with lettuce leaves, and stuff them with hummus and shredded carrots . . . chicken slices and honey mustard . . . egg salad and Canadian bacon (a lean meat).

For veggie lovers (hey, many kids experiment with vegetarianism): Load a container with leafy greens, chopped veggies, and chickpeas. Add a packet of salad dressing and whole-grain pretzels or sesame crackers.

Make it a sub. Or a burrito: Fill a thermos with sliced-up meatballs and tomato sauce. Pack a sliced whole-wheat roll for a hot sub sandwich on the first cool day. Or fill the thermos with chicken-and-bean taco filling; pack whole-wheat tortillas and a bag of shredded lettuce and cheese.

Always throw in some fruit: Fresh is ideal, but stock up on sealed fruit cups (packed in juice, not syrup) and raisin boxes for that morning when there's not a tangerine in sight. "Take every opportunity to get fruits and veggies into your child's stomach," urges Dr. Jen.

Tuck in a "real" dessert: Restricting treats entirely can make kids obsess over them and lead to bingeing and weight problems. Just choose desserts with redeeming qualities: whole-grain Fig (or Strawberry) Newtons, banana-oatmeal muffins, a few dark chocolate Kisses (dark chocolate is rich in the same protective antioxidants found in apples and grapes).

What if you do everything right and your child brings home an untouched lunch box? Don't flip. "Not only do all kids go through stages," says Dr. Jen, "but at times, they will honestly not be hungry. Usually, this happens in a dormant phase of their growth cycle. It's okay for them not to eat much then. Just brace yourself: The next thing you know, they'll be ravenous, and you won't be able to keep enough food in the house."

Need one last motivator? Think of this on those mornings when you're waffling: Getting kids in the habit of eating plenty of fruits and vegetables will benefit them for years to come. If they keep it up into adulthood, when they turn 40, their RealAge could actually be 36. Now that's a nice birthday present!

Help your kids grow up healthy and happy. Browse RealAge’s Raising Healthy Kids articles.

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Just about every food you can think of has made the aphrodisiac hit list at one time or another -- and most of it is bosh. But not quite, says Elizabeth Somer, RD, author of Age-Proof Your Body. Although there's no proof that any food will consistently boost desire, there is definitely something seductive about these five:

1. Bright foods -- If someone's diet is a junk-food debacle, their love life may be, too. That’s because the quality of sexual experiences fluctuates with overall health, says Somer. But reversing the effects of poor nutrition improves energy, mood, and even conception rates. And since brightly colored fruit and veggies are the most nutrient-packed foods you can eat, consuming the recommended nine-a-day could rev up your sex life.

2. Lite foods -- Men with romance on their minds should think low-fat. University of Utah School of Medicine researchers found that testosterone levels plunged 50% in men after they drank a rich milk shake containing 57% fat calories.

3. Chocolate -- This melt-in-your-mouth delectable has been called irresistible, wicked, and divine -- no wonder eating it makes us think of other pleasurable indulgences. But there's actually a possible scientific explanation for its effects. "Chocolate contains a compound called phenylethylamine or PEA that stimulates the nervous system, increases blood pressure, and makes your heart beat faster -- creating feelings similar to being in love," says Somer.

4. Alcohol -- Wine and liquor may rate as love potions because alcohol depresses higher brain centers, suppressing anxiety and inhibitions. But there's a hitch: More than one or two drinks slows arousal and increases clumsiness. Oops. Even Shakespeare wrote about alcohol's double-edged side: "It provides the desire, but it takes away the performance."

5. And, yes, oysters -- The belief that oysters boost fertility has some basis in fact: Just one usually supplies the daily requirement for zinc, a trace mineral that's essential for conception. Even a brief shortage of zinc impairs ovulation in women and reduces semen and testosterone in men. However, while getting the recommended 15 milligrams of zinc a day will help sustain normal sexual function, larger doses will not turn a couch potato into Casanova!

Happily, not only is the food of love surprisingly healthy, so is love itself: Long-term loving relationships can make your RealAge as much as 6.5 years younger.

Find out why you’re never too old to have good sex -- and how to make it happen.

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