Food Addiction...is it real?

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angella_jacobs93
angella_jacobs93 Posts: 54 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have heard the term "food addiction" but I was not sure if it is a real thing or not. I know everyone struggles with cravings but what is the difference between that and a food addiction? How do you know? Is there specific steps for getting past it?
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Replies

  • Isabelle_1929
    Isabelle_1929 Posts: 233 Member
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    I am not an expert or anything but I am pretty sure that all human beings - and animals - are addicted to food.
  • Isabelle_1929
    Isabelle_1929 Posts: 233 Member
    edited March 2016
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    More seriously now: an addiction is a mental health condition and as such, should be diagnosed by a health specialist.

    And I think it's a bad idea to try to diagnose yourself, and even more so with the help of the Internet. The Internet, where being sad = being depressed, being tidy = suffering from STD, having the habit to eat when bored or when it's time to celebrate = being an emotional eater, etc.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
    edited March 2016
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    There isn't a physical addiction, but I do believe people have compulsive eating disorders which would be a psychological addiction much like gambling or sex, etc. If you truly have a compulsive eating disorder, you should probably seek treatment...i.e. therapy, etc.

    IMO, the vast majority of people simply have bad habits and lack self control rather than actually having a compulsive disorder.
  • Isabelle_1929
    Isabelle_1929 Posts: 233 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    There isn't a physical addiction, but I do believe people have compulsive eating disorders which would be a psychological addiction much like gambling or sex, etc. If you truly have a compulsive eating disorder, you should probably seek treatment...i.e. therapy, etc.

    And this.
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    There isn't a physical addiction, but I do believe people have compulsive eating disorders which would be a psychological addiction much like gambling or sex, etc. If you truly have a compulsive eating disorder, you should probably seek treatment...i.e. therapy, etc.

    IMO, the vast majority of people simply have bad habits and lack self control rather than actually having a compulsive disorder.

    +1 (well +2 considering @Isabelle_1929 's endorsement)
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    There isn't a physical addiction, but I do believe people have compulsive eating disorders which would be a psychological addiction much like gambling or sex, etc. If you truly have a compulsive eating disorder, you should probably seek treatment...i.e. therapy, etc.

    IMO, the vast majority of people simply have bad habits and lack self control rather than actually having a compulsive disorder.

    What he said.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    I'll just go ahead and leave this here - there is great information and discussion about the questions you have raised OP.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10226257/food-addiction-a-different-perspective/p1
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    nosajjao wrote: »
    angella_jacobs93 wrote: »
    I know everyone struggles with cravings

    ...aka addictions

    Craving something =/= Addiction...
  • Alyssa_Is_LosingIt
    Alyssa_Is_LosingIt Posts: 4,696 Member
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    nosajjao wrote: »
    angella_jacobs93 wrote: »
    I know everyone struggles with cravings

    ...aka addictions

    I'm craving a trip to the beach.

    I must be addicted.

    I should probably seek help.

    Maybe a nice vacation would help. I'm thinking a beach trip.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    angella_jacobs93 wrote: »
    I have heard the term "food addiction" but I was not sure if it is a real thing or not. I know everyone struggles with cravings but what is the difference between that and a food addiction? How do you know? Is there specific steps for getting past it?

    As in you are different from other humans? No, I do not think it is real.
  • stang02
    stang02 Posts: 75 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    nosajjao wrote: »
    angella_jacobs93 wrote: »
    I know everyone struggles with cravings

    ...aka addictions

    Craving something =/= Addiction...
    ^^^ THIS.

    nosajjao, when I was pregnant, I craved Jay's potato chips and dark chocolate and cheese all together. So according to your "logic" I was addicted to it? NOT LIKELY.
  • CalorieCountChocula
    CalorieCountChocula Posts: 239 Member
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    Totally! I feel like if I don't eat I might eventually die!
  • Alyssa_Is_LosingIt
    Alyssa_Is_LosingIt Posts: 4,696 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    There isn't a physical addiction, but I do believe people have compulsive eating disorders which would be a psychological addiction much like gambling or sex, etc. If you truly have a compulsive eating disorder, you should probably seek treatment...i.e. therapy, etc.

    IMO, the vast majority of people simply have bad habits and lack self control rather than actually having a compulsive disorder.

    These are exactly my feelings on the subject.

    Just as people who are addicted to sex are held accountable for their actions (destroying marriages, spreading STDs) and people who are addicted to gambling are held accountable (destroying relationships, filing for bankruptcy, going into debt, losing their homes), people with compulsive eating disorders should also be held accountable for their own health, which starts with seeking help.
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
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    No such thing as a food addiction. Lack of willpower isnt an addiction. If it was, then how many other terrible things that we just consider as bad or negative are a result of lack of willpower?
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I'll just go ahead and leave this here - there is great information and discussion about the questions you have raised OP.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10226257/food-addiction-a-different-perspective/p1

    This is great information. Read the first post and links.

    Also, check out Isabel Foxen Duke, who has had some great things to say lately re food addiction.
  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
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    Isabelle_1929 wrote: »
    More seriously now: an addiction is a mental health condition and as such, should be diagnosed by a health specialist.

    And I think it's a bad idea to try to diagnose yourself, and even more so with the help of the Internet. The Internet, where being sad = being depressed, being tidy = suffering from STD, having the habit to eat when bored or when it's time to celebrate = being an emotional eater, etc.

    Um what? Do you mean OCD?
  • Scamd83
    Scamd83 Posts: 808 Member
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    Can wanting something we need to survive ever be called an addiction? I'd say it's more survival instinct. I've read numerous times it's human nature to overfeed when food is in abundance to prepare for times when it isn't. Only these days food is always available in abundance. So it could be argued weight gain is due to the availability of food going against our natural instinct and all food shops and outlets should be closed down for days at a time...
  • JoshuaMcAllister
    JoshuaMcAllister Posts: 500 Member
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    I think anyone who has experience of having a friend or family member anorexia might have a different view. Its obviously the other end of the scale but they don't choose to be anorexic but they are mentally ill, I believe that in some cases over eating for years can cause some form of mental health issue. That being said I wouldn't personally want it classed as an addiction, as far to many people who pick up on it and claim it the cause for their ill health when in fact they are simply overweight and do not care about their own well being. I definitely think there is something to it, just not enough to take action on like other addictions.
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
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    JoshuaMcAllister wrote: »
    I think anyone who has experience of having a friend or family member anorexia might have a different view. Its obviously the other end of the scale but they don't choose to be anorexic but they are mentally ill, I believe that in some cases over eating for years can cause some form of mental health issue. That being said I wouldn't personally want it classed as an addiction, as far to many people who pick up on it and claim it the cause for their ill health when in fact they are simply overweight and do not care about their own well being. I definitely think there is something to it, just not enough to take action on like other addictions.

    I'm a mostly but not totally recovered (weight restored but still have body dysmorphia and a bad relationship with food) anorexic binge/ purge and I think "food addiction" is a behavioral addiction. Yes it's a mental illness but in all reality for me it really has nothing to do with food itself. It is more stuff I associate with food. I didn't binge because I was addicted to sugar or because I was craving. I binge in response to hunger and all or nothing, black or white thinking "oh I let myself eat this bad food so I might as well eat all the food as I will gain anyways". I have foods I must avoid just because I associate them with past binges. Also when I get emotional I am more likely to binge. Other than my trigger foods I can be around any foods and not binge at all if I am not restricting or am not in a bad place mentally.

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