You try to eat right; you plan your meals and the times to have them. You know how not to overeat during meals. You know the right foods to have with your meals and you know you're doing well with your diet and overall meal planning, but wait! It's not time for a meal yet! Not now! But you have hunger pangs and you have them now!

You don't want to wreck all your efforts to eat right, but you have to eat right now! Is there anything you can do to get rid of these hunger pangs and not feel guilty about it? Well, there are some little things you can do in this crisis situation that will not only help curb those hunger pangs, but also be of some benefit to your overall daily plan as well. Here are some tips that will come in handy and will keep your diet in

For starters, keep busy. Read a book, call a friend, go for a walk, work on a puzzle or clean some part of your house. Keeping busy will often fend off those hunger pangs until your next mealtime. Make sure you drink plenty of water throughout the day. Often hunger pangs are really your body's way of signaling thirst.

If you drink enough water daily you will likely feel less hunger pangs. Also, try to take a good multivitamin every day. Sometimes your body may signal hunger pangs due to a lack of certain nutrients. If you feel hungry between meals, try waiting for 10 minutes and see if the feeling goes away. In a lot of cases, they will be a false alarm and they will subside by the time 10 minutes pass.

If all else fails, try these little snack ideas that will stop the hunger pangs without the guilt. Try a handful of fat-free chips with a little salsa. A half a cup of raw vegetables like carrots, bell peppers, broccoli, or celery is another good choice. Perhaps 3-4 teaspoons of low fat cottage cheese or yogurt would be a better for you. One cup of fat-free popcorn or a handful of pretzels could also be a good selection.

Just remember when curbing hunger pangs between meals or at night time, where a snack is the only way to relieve them, it only takes a very small amount of whatever you choose to do the job.

By the time they come back, it will probably be about meal time or bed time anyway, so you will have cured the problem without taking a blow to your daily diet plan.