Found this on Digg linking to Time magazine. If you prepare ahead (buy smart snacks and change your philosophy on what food does to you) and understand hunger pitfalls you can work these little life hacks to your advantage.

Nature prefers you fat, but you can take control. New research could explain better approaches to dieting and how to curb your appetite.

Eat Fiber

Unrefined foods, especially those that are high in fiber, stimulate appetite-suppressing hormones and make you feel full

Brush Your Teeth

Take a break from that ice cream to brush. The flavor change helps you resist eating more

Be Consistent

Eating breakfast and regularly scheduled meals keeps hormone levels steady and quashes hunger pangs

Slow Down

It takes a while for the brain to realize that the stomach is stretching. Eating slowly gives the brain time to catch on

The Atkins Diet

Philosophy Cut carbohydrates—they make you hungrier. Load up on fats and proteins.

How It Works When the body takes in very few carbs, it gets its energy by burning fat instead of carbs. This occurs when the liver turns stored fat into chemicals called ketones, which are used for fuel (and can give you less-than-fresh breath).

Downside Long-term adherance. It’s hard to stick to a diet that restricts such a big chunk of the food pyramid.

The Weight Watchers Diet

Philosophy Portion control. Nothing is off-limits, but everything must be in moderation.

How It Works Smaller portions mean fewer calories are taken in, so less fat gets stored. A point system assigns a value to portions of all sorts of foods to help tabulate—and limit—daily consumption. To lose half a kilogram a week, you generally need to consume 500 fewer calories a day.

Downside Hunger. Small portions can leave stomachs growling.

The Ornish Diet

Philosophy Kiss meat goodbye. Cutdown on fats and simple carbs like sugar and alcohol.

How It Works At nine calories per gram, fat is more than twice as dense as protein and carbs. Thus dieters can consume the same amount of food but still lose weight if they eat less fat. Focusing on complex carbs like whole grains helps stabilize blood sugar, and lots of fiber increases satiety.

Downside Strictness. Giving up meat is hard, but no fatty nuts or avocados? Sheesh.

And this was in the related section titled “What makes you eat more food” from TIME.

Time of Day
Through routine, we condition our bodies to expect breakfast, lunch and dinner at the same time each day, says Randy Seeley, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Cincinnati.” Part of the reason you’re hungry at noon is because that’s the time you’ve eaten for the last 100 days.”

Sight
Research using MRIs shows that brain patterns of people viewing photos of foods they like and foods they don’t like are “very different,” Seeley says. “The body anticipates when food is about to enter the system.” And that’s why your mouth starts watering when you see Mom’s pie.

Variety
Even after eating a large meal, we often “make room” for dessert, because a desire for sweets hasn’t been satisfied. Ann Gaba, a registered dietitian at New York Presbyterian Hospital, says that sometimes all it takes is a bit of fruit in a salad during a meal to curb a sugar craving.

Smell
Scent is one of the key ways we cue our bodies that food is near. Once the trigger goes off, it can induce the insulin secretion that makes us think we’re hungry. Says Sharron Dalton, a nutrition professor at New York University: “Smell and sight alone activate the appetite cascade.”

Alcohol
Drinking has not been scientifically proved to stimulate appetite, but too much beer, wine or liquor can impair judgment, causing us to eat more. “Most people who are on a diet will say it’s a lot harder to push themselves away from the table if they’ve been drinking,” observes Seeley.

Temperature
The colder the temperature, the more people tend to eat, which is why restaurants often keep thermostats low. “Your metabolism drops when it’s time to eat, and eating warms you up,” says David Ludwig, professor of pediatrics at Harvard. “Heat is a satiety signal.”

Refined Carbs
After a meal heavy in refined carbohydrates, like white pasta, the body may crave food again within only a few hours. These foods cause blood sugar to drop, and “when our blood sugar is crashing, we’re going to be a lot more interested in food in general,” Ludwig says.

The most important tip is to avoid snacking on high glycemic foods. I like to snack on: spinach leaves with dried fruit (like they’re chips), satiating fat-filled nuts and fiber-filled fruit, phytonutrient-rich bitter herbs (mint, thyme, oregano etc.), drink water and green/white tea with a lemon, and supplement with vitamins so as not to be mineral deficient.  I also recommend BBC’s The Truth about Food and I’ll post more video on that in the future.

Bonus Five Quick Tips for Beating Your Craving for Sweets

Craving Sweets?

Expert tips on how to quench your craving for sweets

Grab a portion-controlled treat. If you must have something sweet, keep it small. This way, you get your sugar fix with the fewest number of calories possible.

Q: Even after a big dinner, I still crave something sweet. What’s the best, low-cal way to quench my hunger?

A: Your craving is the result of being trained to expect sweets after a meal. Try breaking the routine for one week and you should have no problem drastically reducing your body’s need for sugar. These five tricks will help you get through the next seven days:

1. Eat less sugar and refined carbs during the day. The less sugar you eat, the less insulin your body releases—and the less sugar you end up wanting.

2. Brush your teeth or use a mouthwash after your meal. Or pop some sugar-free mints. Studies show that the flavor of mint helps to curb an errant sweet tooth.

3. Stock up on low-calorie, sugar-free options, such as sugar-free Popsicles, Fudgsicles, pudding, or gelatin packs.

4. Try some fruit. It’s sweet, but also packed with vitamins and fiber.