Food Addiction?!

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  • gebhart4
    gebhart4 Posts: 24 Member
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    I always leave enough cal in the evening for treats. I think that might be the secret. It works for me at least.
  • Aviendha_RJ
    Aviendha_RJ Posts: 600 Member
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    What KIND of craving is it?

    Chocolate? Chips? Candy?

    Because I buy the 100 calorie snack packs for my cravings. I get the 120 calorie chips packs, 100 calorie oreos and chocolate chip cookies, and 60 calorie puddings.

    That way, I CAN give in to my cravings, and feel like I'm still getting what I want. I mean, if I deprive myself completely, then I'm going to slip up and sabotage myself. And I feel less guilty about what I've eaten when it's under 200 calories.
  • JADEPH0EN1X
    JADEPH0EN1X Posts: 162 Member
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    What KIND of craving is it?

    Chocolate? Chips? Candy?

    Because I buy the 100 calorie snack packs for my cravings. I get the 120 calorie chips packs, 100 calorie oreos and chocolate chip cookies, and 60 calorie puddings.

    That way, I CAN give in to my cravings, and feel like I'm still getting what I want. I mean, if I deprive myself completely, then I'm going to slip up and sabotage myself. And I feel less guilty about what I've eaten when it's under 200 calories.
  • JADEPH0EN1X
    JADEPH0EN1X Posts: 162 Member
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    I agree with having a small amount of what you crave on hand . I find that if I crave something I can have every thing else but that and still not be happy . So now I have a little of whatever it is I want and the craving goes - without me having hundreds of extra calories .
  • JacksMom12
    JacksMom12 Posts: 1,044 Member
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    I take it you've never actually tried cociane?
  • ArcyF
    ArcyF Posts: 23 Member
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    What KIND of craving is it?

    Chocolate? Chips? Candy?

    Because I buy the 100 calorie snack packs for my cravings. I get the 120 calorie chips packs, 100 calorie oreos and chocolate chip cookies, and 60 calorie puddings.

    That way, I CAN give in to my cravings, and feel like I'm still getting what I want. I mean, if I deprive myself completely, then I'm going to slip up and sabotage myself. And I feel less guilty about what I've eaten when it's under 200 calories.


    Everything and all of it...
    its more than a craving, its not feeling satisfied till the food goes kerplonk in my tummy and I feel full...
    I've tried the snacks, they don't do the trick...Before MFP I did use those snack packs but realized I had to get rid of them when I was eating 2-3, 4, 5 a day... So yea I need a different method of getting around this thing
  • rlp2891
    rlp2891 Posts: 9 Member
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    I know most people will say total deprivation of snacks doesn't work, and for a lot of people it doesn't. But for me it was a great start. I decided to cut out chocolate to try to get rid of chronic migraines, and I figured I'd cut out all desserts while I was at it. Two weeks later, I had a brownie- and wow, it was nowhere near as satisfying as I remembered, I actually felt a bit sick. Since then my sweet cravings have gone way down, and when I do feel like snacking a little bit, I'm way more in control of portion size than ever before. So I've continued to seriously limit my desserts and I feel amazing.

    Probably not the solution for everyone- but I do think that cutting myself off for a short bit helped with the sugar addiction. If I actually felt any desire for a scoop of ice cream now, I would have no guilt about eating it, because I know I wouldn't go crazy like I used to :) I also eat Greek Yogurt with strawberries for breakfast every day- sweet but still healthy. Good luck!
  • ArcyF
    ArcyF Posts: 23 Member
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    I take it you've never actually tried cociane?

    You know I haven't because I figured it's kind of really bad for you and I'd have to be a complete idiot to take it, but I've known people who've used it once and a while--and they're not addicts.

    I think that theoretically speaking, some people may have naturally tendencies to be more addicted to some things than others, that and the longevity of the use can influence how easily you can quit something. For example, back in college I smoked some cigs every now and then at parties. I never developed a habit and only really did it to be part of the group..silly right? Well that's an 18 year old for ya with no self-discipline or self-respect...

    But anyways, studies have been done on the effects of consuming oodles of sugar and its effects on the brain, with data being quite astonishing
  • matchbox_girl
    matchbox_girl Posts: 535 Member
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    Sugar IS a drug. Please, watch Hungry for Change. It goes into food addiction.

    I am highly addicted to food. My cravings are almost painful. And they don't go away. They persist, and they get worse, like withdrawal.
  • ArcyF
    ArcyF Posts: 23 Member
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    You are not crazy at all - food addiction is a recognised phenomenon, to do with spikes of seratonin in the brain when highly processed carbohydrates hit the body systems. The food industry is all about creating, feeding and serving this addiction.
    As with all addictions, the solution is to remove the addict substances from the system, with support and with knowledge and understanding.
    The group I belong to has a system using a food plan, based around specific amounts of fruit, vegetables, proteins and non-wheat carbohydrates. The early period of weaning off the sugar and flour does often cause unpleasant symptoms, but after a few days people report feeling a great freedom and energy.

    Hi Helen! and thanks for your feedback!
    Now what is this group you speak of and how might one be able become a member or gain knowledge of this food plan?
  • ArcyF
    ArcyF Posts: 23 Member
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    Sugar IS a drug. Please, watch Hungry for Change. It goes into food addiction.

    I am highly addicted to food. My cravings are almost painful. And they don't go away. They persist, and they get worse, like withdrawal.

    Thanks matchbox girl
    I'll go watch it now :)
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Sugar IS a drug. Please, watch Hungry for Change. It goes into food addiction.

    I am highly addicted to food. My cravings are almost painful. And they don't go away. They persist, and they get worse, like withdrawal.

    I would suggest that you watch a heroin addict go through withdrawals.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    I tend to get cravings when I restrict calories. I feed them, in a responsible way. Usually with ice cream. A serving of ice cream planned ahead to be eaten shortly before bed is something to look forward to all day ("I'm craving sugar.... that ice cream tonight will be delicious").
  • needtoloseafewpounds
    needtoloseafewpounds Posts: 161 Member
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    I manage to satisfy most of my cravings through sugar-free drinks like Crystal Light or through a bag of 100 cal popcorn!
  • maillemaker
    maillemaker Posts: 1,253 Member
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    I would suggest that all of you who have never experienced the uncontrollable urge to eat to kindly stay out of these kinds of threads. Clearly you have never experienced a behavioral addiction and so you have no ability to relate to what the people here are talking about.

    Just because breaking a behavioral addiction like gambling, or internet use, or eating is not the same as breaking a physiological addiction like heroin does not mean that it is not a difficult thing to break.

    Many, many, many people have set themselves up with a lifetime of deriving pleasure from eating. Their brains are now wired so that their reward centers are triggered with food.

    When I started my diet in April of this year, the first 6 weeks were terrible. I thought about food all the time. I was constantly looking at my watch to figure out when I could eat again. I dreamed about food. I would go to bed early to avoid thinking about food.

    It takes just as much willpower to control your eating as it does for any other behavioral addiction.

    For those of you like the OP who are in the throws of breaking your behavioral addiction with food, the advice I can offer is first, make your diet boring. It is hard enough to stick to a diet - it is harder still when you try to stick to a diet and moderate the foods you love to eat! Switch to a diet that is OK to eat but that you don't feel compelled to binge on.

    Also, cut your carbs and increase your protein. Cutting carbs cuts out many sources of tempting calorie-dense foods and it prevents blood sugar spikes that when they crash make you hungry again. Increased protein in your diet has been shown to decrease hunger and it works for me.

    Avoid the "in for a penny, in for a pound mentality". It is easy to binge and then figure, "Well, I blew it today, I may as well blow it tomorrow. I'll start again next week." Don't do this. Realize that if you are on a 2-pound-a-week goal you will be eating a deficit of about 1000 calories a day. Even if you blow your diet by eating a bowl of ice cream it is unlikely you will get much above your 1000 calorie deficit unless you totally go hog wild. But no matter what you do start over again the next day. You are on a mission that is going to take years. It's OK if some days you just eat junk and blow your calorie goal. The important thing is that from week to week you consistently run a deficit. Stay focused.

    Get MFP friends here that you want to be like and who actively comment on your progress and log entries. It is very important to know that people are watching you. You will behave better when you know you are being watched.

    Publish your "ticker" in your posts, and open your log. It's a lot easier to talk the talk if you can show you are walking the walk.

    DO NOT GIVE UP.

    I'm 5 months in the diet, 1 month in the gym. Down 28 pounds.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    I take it you've never actually tried cociane?

    Agree.

    OP. You have an I like to stuff my face and look for excuses that absolve me of responsibility. It's just so dumb to think sugar is anything like cocaine or heroin. I bet most of the people in this thread have no idea what it's like to be addicted to drugs. Knowing someone, reading an article or watching a documentary do not count.

    It's time to start accepting responsibility for the way we eat.

    Your "addiction" did not cause you to put up a picture of a big Hershey bar in your profile.

    ^I like this.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    Just because breaking a behavioral addiction like gambling, or internet use, or eating is not the same as breaking a physiological addiction like heroin does not mean that it is not a difficult thing to break.

    Difficult? Sure.

    Anything remotely like heroin or cocaine? Absolutely not.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    @ maillemaker

    with all due respect. I have never experienced that, but have had close family members die of heroin addiction, so I feel that I have every right to post in a thread when people try to use hard drug addictions as examples as they have no idea what they are talking about.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    @ maillemaker

    with all due respect. I have never experienced that, but have had close family members die of heroin addiction, so I feel that I have every right to post in a thread when people try to use hard drug addictions as examples as they have no idea what they are talking about.

    ^Agreed....plus it's a public forum

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