If eating trash makes us sick, why do we keep eating it?

Moderation: the avoidance of excess or extremes, especially in one's behavior.

Moderation is the big word to stick to but there is science to it as well
Food companies are selling us drugs, sugar and salt.
They know that they can sell more and more.
The whole world is getting fat and ill as a result.
We crave them and we crave foods that contain them

I'm the worst, i love those foods and give me them all the time. I'm trying desperately to break the cycle but struggling and do give in to it occasionally.

And it's not your fault, it's the way you've been programmed, we've all been programmed. You could go even further and not blame the food companies, after all, they're doing what every company wants to do, grow, expand, push up profits and pay the shareholders more but I won't go there, I'm already in enough trouble writing this and will die in flames

Catsheep wrote: »

So I have been having this thought quite frequently lately. I eat a bunch of junk (ie. fast food, candy, sweets, fried foods, etc.) and I feel really crappy afterwards. I feel sick to my stomach and lethargic and I swear that I will make sure that I don't feel this way ever again because it is so horrid. But then comes the next day and it's back to the desire of having all the junk again despite the knowledge of what the result will entail. So how does one break this cycle? I truly have a desire to live a healthy and active lifestyle but I feel like I am self sabotaging and trying to fulfill my subconscious self prophecy that I will fail. What are y'alls thoughts on this subject? If you have had any experiences dealing with this issue I'd love to hear about it.

I don't know about you, but I don't make it a habit to eat out of my garbage can, much less do it repetitively!

On a more serious note; no food is trash. Food is simply a source of energy, with some being less nutrient dense and more calorie dense than others. Eating food with little nutritional value doesn't mean you're eating trash, and it's more likely that overeating is what is causing you to feel sick, not the foods themselves.

If you can't control your intake when you eat these specific foods, maybe you need to cut them out of your diet (temporarily) until you learn to eat them in moderate amounts. The only solution I've found to break a cycle is to stop making excuses for yourself and JUST DO IT. Otherwise, it will just keep happening, because nobody can "fix" you except you.

TavistockToad wrote: »

Mudler wrote: »

And it's not your fault, it's the way you've been programmed, we've all been programmed. You could go even further and not blame the food companies, after all, they're doing what every company wants to do, grow, expand, push up profits and pay the shareholders more but I won't go there, I'm already in enough trouble writing this and will die in flames

the way we've 'all' been programmed...?

I am guessing personal accountability has gone out the window. Simply I am shocked. I haven't been programmed to eat any way.


BTW, I eat fast food frequently, but my fast food is Chipotle and it's delicious. No one takes my Chipotle away.

Once I stopped labeling foods as good or bad and started to focus on what my real goals where, things were easier for me. I eat candy, i eat fast food, but in the end, i make sure I eat to my goals.

the carbs and crap in the food actually make you crave more of it, it is a vicious cycle.

I've been eating a piece or two of Halloween candy every night for the past 2 weeks. I feel great, I look forward to my evening treat, and I can't imagine you'd feel crappy if you only ate a serving of "junk" instead of a pile of it.

As I've lost weight and gotten healthier, I have noticed that I can't eat like I used to. Before I could tuck away an entire wawa sub (10 inches) with double cheese and loaded with veggies and still have room for a side of mac and cheese and a soda. Nowadays I eat a shortie sub (I think it's 6 inches?) and that's it. Done. No more food needed (or wanted!). I imagine I would feel sick now if I ate a whole sub.

Mudler wrote: »

And it's not your fault, it's the way you've been programmed, we've all been programmed. You could go even further and not blame the food companies, after all, they're doing what every company wants to do, grow, expand, push up profits and pay the shareholders more but I won't go there, I'm already in enough trouble writing this and will die in flames

What? We've all been programmed????

Where is personal responsibility in this?

No one is to blame but myself for getting fat, I made a decision not to give a damn, eat too much, drink too much and sit on my butt too much. That's why I was fat.

Now I eat all the same things, but smaller amounts and I am much more active because it is my choice and my responsibility for what I do.

Well, I believe there are a few things going on that contribute to this. The way we're wired biologically, and additives/chemicals in foods. As one previous poster said, food is fuel, we need to eat. But, the food manufacturer's don't make it easy for us. Many foods have additives that can have a metabolic impact (read Master Your Metabolism/ Jillian Michaels, or any of Joel Fuhrman's books). Not only do you have the sugar content going against you but when you figure additives into the mix, it becomes more apparent as to why its so hard to back away from the table.

Based on what I went through, the more natural my diet became, the more the cravings subsided. There is a certain degree of gutting it out involved too. Sometimes you have to consciously decide not to eat the donut, cereal, or piece of candy. Correcting bad habits isn't a fast process. If you're increasing the time between lapses, you're headed in the right direction. Don't beat yourself up for not immediately correcting the problem. Just keep chipping away at it.