The worst addiction in the world is FOOD

lyndahh75

tennisdude, ya easy to say, no always to do. BTW, not a fan of meat. I am quite the sugar *kitten*. Am working on it...I think.....

CSARdiver

There are several posts on "addiction" on this site and you'll find given the nature of MFP that there is a great deal of resistance to this thinking as it simply is not healthy. You are not addicted to food anymore that you are addicted to oxygen. You may have an unhealthy relationship with food, but thinking of it as a addiction is not a strategy for success. Thinking of this in terms of addiction is making the case that you have no control over your actions.

Take control over what you can control - first and foremost food and exercise. Don't do anything drastic and simply reduce your calorie intake and increase your exercise regimen. Make a calendar and put something in writing - again make Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results-focused, Time-bound (SMART) goals. Hit that goal, celebrate, and make a new goal. Build up a strong network of people in real life and on MFP who will support you.

Get that negativity out of your head and out of your life. Identify your negative triggers and remove them whenever possible.

Char231023

You do need to eat to live but you don't need to eat junk food to live. Actually you don't need to even enjoy food to be able to live off of it. Foods purpose is to fuel your body no to make you happy. All junk food can be consumed in moderation. That might not be the case for you. If you can't control your self around cookies (just an example) don't eat cookies. You don't actually need cookies to keep you alive.

lyndahh75

CSARdiver- best advice so far! Thank you. You are absolutely right. My biggest issue is, I am VERY negative with myself. I am a cheerleader to my kids...feeding them all the positive feedback they need and yet when it regards myself, not a big supporter. THAT is what needs to change.

lyndahh75

Char231023 - right. I agree. I've said that many times before, trying to motivate myself. Did you use cookies as an example because of the cookie monster gif? LOL it makes me laugh every time i see it.

sashayoung72

@lyndahh75 Ok before everyone goes beyond all technical and quotey, I completely understand! But this time, something finally clicked, or snapped lol. I have weak moments, stupid ice cream, but I do my best to include it good or bad. And as someone who use to drink everyone under the table, many many many moons ago, I understand what you were saying, cause I don't have to walk into a liquor store. I just cut it out completely. But I have to go to the grocery pretty often and then there's all the fast food (which I also cut, and I do believe it has addictive properties).

brower47

LyndaSheppardHowitt wrote: »

People can live without Meth, dope, and booze. Granted, ask anyone addicted to these substances to live without it, they may feel like they will die. They will live without it.
Food on the other hand, well we can't live without that. So of all of the things I could be addicted to, it is food. Of course, why not?
Why is there such comfort and joy brought on when eating something sweet or loaded with gravy? The true irony is, though during the initial consumption of unhealthy foods make me feel happy, merely seconds later I am laden with guilt.
Why can't I take pleasure in something physical, feel those same endorphins race through me after a nice walk around the block?
Why are there so many experts on the subject of diet and health yet we, as a country, are one of THE most obese countries?

I am so tired of being a slave to food. I want to quit it. Oh wait, silly girl, you HAVE to eat to stay alive. May as well enjoy the taste and continue to battle those terrible demons that plague you, pulling you like a tug of war rope to one direction then another. (Low fat, Low Carb, Low Calorie, Low food)
Lose lose situation unless I learn to look at things differently. How do you reprogram your 40 year old brain to stop beating yourself up, stop hating self, stop punishing self?
Love is all you need, right? Love thyself in order to really know how to love others. Is that it?
Gosh, I feel like a child that was tossed into a world of adults expected to perform like an adult. Sink or swim kiddo, sink or swim. How does a donut sound? No? How about some fried chicken...mmm.......

Oh, no, keep eating that apple- temptation will catch you later this afternoon when your will is weak. See ya then weakling!

This post is so full of nope that my oversized nope storage bag is now empty. I guess no more forums for me today.

Though nothing is more addictive than air. I can go weeks without eating. Air, not so much. Stupid, addictive air!!!

lyndahh75

@sashayyoung72 Thank you.

lemurcat12

LyndaSheppardHowitt wrote: »

People can live without Meth, dope, and booze. Granted, ask anyone addicted to these substances to live without it, they may feel like they will die. They will live without it.
Food on the other hand, well we can't live without that. So of all of the things I could be addicted to, it is food. Of course, why not?

Obviously, none of us can live without food, which is why it seems wrong to call it an addiction. In a way, what an addiction is would be the way a substance you do not need can take advantage of your body's ways of encouraging us to do what we need to live (and reproduce) to focus on on other, unhealthy behaviors instead.

It's 100% normal to find food pleasurable and to desire it.

Why is there such comfort and joy brought on when eating something sweet or loaded with gravy? The true irony is, though during the initial consumption of unhealthy foods make me feel happy, merely seconds later I am laden with guilt.

I think it's this cycle of guilt/shame from eating foods you have told yourself are "bad" that tend to lead to more addictive-type reactions more often than not. For example, someone feels bad so figure why bother and eats more to self-comfort or decides "well, I blew it, might as well go crazy," or has told herself so long that if she eats one M&M she'll finish a giant bag of them that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Therapy is the way to go for many with food issues, definitely. For me, what has helped is to try and take a really logical, pragmatic approach to food -- to focus on why I like it (how it's made and all that, to be interested in cooking and recreating tastes), how it meets my nutritional goals, the calories, and not to imbue it with any powder beyond that.

And as for eating behaviors that are habitual I've tried to be aware of that, and to avoid bad habits and to act in ways that make it easier on myself. If I have a habit of eating in the middle of the day at work when stressed, I know I can't start snacking then -- I have much more control simply not snacking and eating at meals, and not letting myself eat as a reaction to stress.

Why can't I take pleasure in something physical, feel those same endorphins race through me after a nice walk around the block?

You probably can -- it just takes time to build new habits and sometimes to get pleasure from new things. I did find (after a while) that I could use exercise as a stress release much like I used to use food (and still want to at times).

Lynzdee18

I think OP was just trying to put into words her thoughts about the pressure she feels. It is all fine and dandy to discuss how food isn't an addiction. To her it 'feels' like what she thinks an addiction is. I don't believe she was denigrating the trials of drug/booze addictions and such. She was just extemporizing on her personal observations of her life situation where she feels powerless to say no to food. Simply that.

lyndahh75

@Lynzdee18 yes, exactly. It was a mental dump, how I FEEL. I know that things could be worse and I could be dependent on something else like booze or drugs. Alcoholism IS in my family, and so are eating disorders. It is what it is....could be worse for sure

Char231023

lyndahh75 wrote: »

Char231023 - right. I agree. I've said that many times before, trying to motivate myself. Did you use cookies as an example because of the cookie monster gif? LOL it makes me laugh every time i see it.

No, actually the cookie monster was posted while I was writing my two cents. Just a funny coincidence.

DeguelloTex

Lynzdee18 wrote: »

I think OP was just trying to put into words her thoughts about the pressure she feels. It is all fine and dandy to discuss how food isn't an addiction. To her it 'feels' like what she thinks an addiction is. I don't believe she was denigrating the trials of drug/booze addictions and such. She was just extemporizing on her personal observations of her life situation where she feels powerless to say no to food. Simply that.

Maybe so. It seems to me that thinking of it in terms of the properties of the food rather than in terms of her decisions undermines gaining that power.

Gianfranco_R

lemurcat12 wrote: »

LyndaSheppardHowitt wrote: »

People can live without Meth, dope, and booze. Granted, ask anyone addicted to these substances to live without it, they may feel like they will die. They will live without it.
Food on the other hand, well we can't live without that. So of all of the things I could be addicted to, it is food. Of course, why not?

Obviously, none of us can live without food, which is why it seems wrong to call it an addiction. In a way, what an addiction is would be the way a substance you do not need can take advantage of your body's ways of encouraging us to do what we need to live (and reproduce) to focus on on other, unhealthy behaviors instead.

It's 100% normal to find food pleasurable and to desire it.

Why is there such comfort and joy brought on when eating something sweet or loaded with gravy? The true irony is, though during the initial consumption of unhealthy foods make me feel happy, merely seconds later I am laden with guilt.

I think it's this cycle of guilt/shame from eating foods you have told yourself are "bad" that tend to lead to more addictive-type reactions more often than not. For example, someone feels bad so figure why bother and eats more to self-comfort or decides "well, I blew it, might as well go crazy," or has told herself so long that if she eats one M&M she'll finish a giant bag of them that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Therapy is the way to go for many with food issues, definitely. For me, what has helped is to try and take a really logical, pragmatic approach to food -- to focus on why I like it (how it's made and all that, to be interested in cooking and recreating tastes), how it meets my nutritional goals, the calories, and not to imbue it with any powder beyond that.

And as for eating behaviors that are habitual I've tried to be aware of that, and to avoid bad habits and to act in ways that make it easier on myself. If I have a habit of eating in the middle of the day at work when stressed, I know I can't start snacking then -- I have much more control simply not snacking and eating at meals, and not letting myself eat as a reaction to stress.

Why can't I take pleasure in something physical, feel those same endorphins race through me after a nice walk around the block?

You probably can -- it just takes time to build new habits and sometimes to get pleasure from new things. I did find (after a while) that I could use exercise as a stress release much like I used to use food (and still want to at times).

Ah, btw, since you like David Katz:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-katz-md/food-addiction_b_1085184.html

lemurcat12

DeguelloTex wrote: »

Lynzdee18 wrote: »

I think OP was just trying to put into words her thoughts about the pressure she feels. It is all fine and dandy to discuss how food isn't an addiction. To her it 'feels' like what she thinks an addiction is. I don't believe she was denigrating the trials of drug/booze addictions and such. She was just extemporizing on her personal observations of her life situation where she feels powerless to say no to food. Simply that.

Maybe so. It seems to me that thinking of it in terms of the properties of the food rather than in terms of her decisions undermine gaining that power.

I think this is correct.

What I'd ask OP, based on the "worst addiction" premise is whether she finds that eating ANY foods act as a trigger. That's the premise behind the idea that an addict must give up the substance entirely (and often it's claimed that a drug/alcohol addict cannot use any drug thereafter).

If it's a matter of particular foods being the trigger -- and apart from whether or not it's a "real" addiction -- can't you just avoid the trigger foods, at least until working through the issues?

I've just never understood this idea that it's "the worst" addiction.

I'd also point out that one of the reasons addictions are so horrible is that people basically throw their lives away because they care about the substance to which they are addicted over everything else -- loved ones, their own lives, jobs, etc. It becomes the central thing in their life (and that's why dealing with addicted loved ones can be so terrible, as they are selfishly fixated on the substance).

I think there are rare cases of people (some who become extremely obese) who reach this level of obsession with eating behaviors, but I really don't think that's what's going on with most of us who have used food for self comfort. There's no question that eating another cookie is something you'd never sacrifice a job or loved one for. Yes, people do eat despite gaining weight being unhealthy, but there I think it's much more about not seeing the direct effect of one more cookie on the weight or thinking "well, I can deal tomorrow." It's more of a short term vs. long term consequences balancing issue -- many humans are bad at that.

flaminica

DeguelloTex wrote: »

Maybe so. It seems to me that thinking of it in terms of the properties of the food rather than in terms of her decisions undermine gaining that power.

Yes. I have problems with this current tendency in pop culture to broaden the definition of addiction. It smacks of evasion. "Poor me. It's not my fault I ate the whole bag of cookies. It's the cookie's fault." No, you picked the cookies up off the shelf, you put them in the buggy, on the belt, in the bag, into the car, into the cupboard, then on to the sofa. They didn't open themselves and fly into your mouth.

Owning that and taking responsibility is the first step to stopping. The first step to not drinking all the gravy is not making it. If this is too difficult a step, seek professional assistance, because you won't find help on the internet.

lemurcat12

Gianfranco_R wrote: »

lemurcat12 wrote: »

LyndaSheppardHowitt wrote: »

People can live without Meth, dope, and booze. Granted, ask anyone addicted to these substances to live without it, they may feel like they will die. They will live without it.
Food on the other hand, well we can't live without that. So of all of the things I could be addicted to, it is food. Of course, why not?

Obviously, none of us can live without food, which is why it seems wrong to call it an addiction. In a way, what an addiction is would be the way a substance you do not need can take advantage of your body's ways of encouraging us to do what we need to live (and reproduce) to focus on on other, unhealthy behaviors instead.

It's 100% normal to find food pleasurable and to desire it.

Why is there such comfort and joy brought on when eating something sweet or loaded with gravy? The true irony is, though during the initial consumption of unhealthy foods make me feel happy, merely seconds later I am laden with guilt.

I think it's this cycle of guilt/shame from eating foods you have told yourself are "bad" that tend to lead to more addictive-type reactions more often than not. For example, someone feels bad so figure why bother and eats more to self-comfort or decides "well, I blew it, might as well go crazy," or has told herself so long that if she eats one M&M she'll finish a giant bag of them that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Therapy is the way to go for many with food issues, definitely. For me, what has helped is to try and take a really logical, pragmatic approach to food -- to focus on why I like it (how it's made and all that, to be interested in cooking and recreating tastes), how it meets my nutritional goals, the calories, and not to imbue it with any powder beyond that.

And as for eating behaviors that are habitual I've tried to be aware of that, and to avoid bad habits and to act in ways that make it easier on myself. If I have a habit of eating in the middle of the day at work when stressed, I know I can't start snacking then -- I have much more control simply not snacking and eating at meals, and not letting myself eat as a reaction to stress.

Why can't I take pleasure in something physical, feel those same endorphins race through me after a nice walk around the block?

You probably can -- it just takes time to build new habits and sometimes to get pleasure from new things. I did find (after a while) that I could use exercise as a stress release much like I used to use food (and still want to at times).

Ah, btw, since you like David Katz:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-katz-md/food-addiction_b_1085184.html

Yes, I've read that (I may even have linked it before), and I think it's not that dissimilar from what I said.

If the point is just that we need it to live, of course it's addictive in a way, but that means nothing.

What's screwed up and problematic about the things we usually talk about as addictions is that they encourage us to replace the things we need and that our body's reaction is supposed to encourage (eating food, relationships with other humans) with something else, using the same pathways -- blowing off food for drugs, for example.

Whether or not food is addictive is a lesser question, subordinate to a more important one: why does addiction exist at all? Why are humans capable of becoming addicted to anything?

The answer is survival. Our nervous system and endocrine system evolved to reward us most robustly for behaviors that require real effort, and are required for survival. Getting food has -- until quite recently -- required real effort, and is of course required for personal survival. Finding a mate is often a labor-intensive undertaking, but is key to the survival of our selfish genes.

Genes are running this show. The humans who happened to have genes that rewarded them most robustly for eating and mating were most apt to eat, mate and survive long enough to pass on the chance to their progeny. Those humans who were blasé about eating and mating never got to progeny.

Food and sex are the reasons variations on the theme of addiction are physiologically possible in the first place. Almost anything else that happens to be addictive is circumstantially hijacking reward systems built for food and sex.

vivmom2014

lyndahh75 wrote: »

CSARdiver- best advice so far! Thank you. You are absolutely right. My biggest issue is, I am VERY negative with myself. I am a cheerleader to my kids...feeding them all the positive feedback they need and yet when it regards myself, not a big supporter. THAT is what needs to change.

Our children observe us far more than we know. They're not going to buy your cheerleading for them, if you turn around and treat yourself poorly with a defeatist attitude.

It's never too late to grow up. You've got a problem with sweet, comfort foods. Well, you can fix the problem. Stop giving all power to the food.

Just start. Today is a new day. Start making small changes in the way you think, and the way you behave around food. Start creating some new favorite foods - delicious, wonderful food does not have to be super sweet or covered in gravy.

Syneea

There HAS to be a correlation between obesity and food addiction for some folks... I am no scientist, but I am sure that if we did a google search we would find reliable studies regarding this matter. For someone to eat themselves until they are sick, disregard the fact that their cholesterol is off the charts, they are borderline diabetic (or diabetic), blood pressure is ridiculous, and yet they keep eating because it makes them feel good (before the guilt and crash) ...HAS to have an illness with a physical/mental component... Thankfully, I am not addicted to food (or anything else for that matter), but I believe that it undermines the struggles of those who are by just telling them, "no you can not be"...something that I was guilty of thinking as well...The best advise was probably from the first poster..for those who feel that they have an unhealthy relationship with food or have family that believe that they do based on their eating habits and behaviors, should seek counseling.

For the OP, I am sure that there are many folks on here agreeing with you, but just not brave enough to say it as you did, or even admit it to themselves. As you stated, this probably was not the forum to say it, but I am sure that you may have offered some folks food for thought (no pun intended), and they will seek counseling based on your topic and these comments.

Lynzdee18

flaminica wrote: »

DeguelloTex wrote: »

Maybe so. It seems to me that thinking of it in terms of the properties of the food rather than in terms of her decisions undermine gaining that power.

Yes. I have problems with this current tendency in pop culture to broaden the definition of addiction. It smacks of evasion. "Poor me. It's not my fault I ate the whole bag of cookies. It's the cookie's fault." No, you picked the cookies up off the shelf, you put them in the buggy, on the belt, in the bag, into the car, into the cupboard, then on to the sofa. They didn't open themselves and fly into your mouth.

Owning that and taking responsibility is the first step to stopping. The first step to not drinking all the gravy is not making it. If this is too difficult a step, seek professional assistance, because you won't find help on the internet.

So does this mean, it's the gin's or the cocaine's fault that an addict is hooked on a substance? I am not an expert in addictions, but in order to get clean, doesn't a person need to first acknowledge the problem and accept responsibility?