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Fast Food Addiction - Can Anyone Else Relate?
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Ironic post is ironic.Fizzypopization wrote: »You aren't addicted, as fast food isn't an addicting substance. You just need to exercise some willpower.
I lost 65 pounds and still ate fast food. I just cut down from going after work on the weekends (both days, often) to once a week maximum, opting for smaller sandwiches and no fries (not worth the calories for what you get). It fits into my calories well.
I'm going to blow apparently everyone's mind here, but all addictions are mental. The idea of physical addiction is a myth. That doesn't mean addiction isn't real it means we thought the cause was different. Gambling can cause brain rushes same way drugs, caffeine, and fast food does. Y'all need some actual science on this board yeesh.20 -
Did you know McDonald’s French fries has 17 different additives? I think the addiction may be both mental and physical but perhaps more mental (mind over body). Fast food is so unnatural and so processed that our bodies literally don’t know what to do with it once consumed. Our bodies are not designed to deal with such high levels of processed food. Let’s think about it this way: how many oranges or apples can you eat before you wouldn’t want to eat any more? Now how much French fries can you have before your body says stop? Which one has the highest calorie and fat content? Our bodies can deal with natural food very easily. We eat some and we are satisfied. However, processed food (chips, fast food, etc) is a different story. They are designed to make us want to go back for more. It is as if there is a disconnect between the brain and the stomach and the signals are not being routed properly.
In short, I think this addiction you are referring to has mostly mental as well as physical components to it. Some psychotherapy will defintily help by identifying the root of the problem as well as methods to deal with the urges. I hope you find your way. Fight on!
Okay...so Devil's Advocate on my part and yours.
How "processed" do you consider "processed" food?
I made a fantastic dish of sweet potato oven-baked "fries" with a goodly amount of olive oil and salt the other night. The calorie count was higher than a small serving of McDonald's fries. Was this a good choice based on macros? A bad choice on calories? Where do we draw the line? It was absolutely a "processed" dish because I cut the potato, blanched it, baked it, salted and seasoned it. I may have started with a raw sweet potato, but it was thoroughly processed by the time I was done.
How many oranges and apples can I eat before I "wouldn’t want to eat any more"? Very few because I get physically sick eating them due to allergies. French fries? A serving and I'm full. I can't eat egg yolks or else I'll bloat and puke. "Natural foods" don't necessarily mean the best choice.
I certainly believe there is a "disconnect between the brain and the stomach" but I honestly think it's more cultural– at least in regards to the USA– than anything. Food is comfort. You see that in cultures around the globe, into ancient history. Hell, I work at an 18th century site and do cooking demonstrations, and food has not changed much in the last 300 years. If anything we're eating FAR better than our forefathers could have dreamed of. We may be fatter due to personal choices, but nobody's dying of scurvy anymore.
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Did you know McDonald’s French fries has 17 different additives? I think the addiction may be both mental and physical but perhaps more mental (mind over body). Fast food is so unnatural and so processed that our bodies literally don’t know what to do with it once consumed. Our bodies are not designed to deal with such high levels of processed food. Let’s think about it this way: how many oranges or apples can you eat before you wouldn’t want to eat any more? Now how much French fries can you have before your body says stop? Which one has the highest calorie and fat content? Our bodies can deal with natural food very easily. We eat some and we are satisfied. However, processed food (chips, fast food, etc) is a different story. They are designed to make us want to go back for more. It is as if there is a disconnect between the brain and the stomach and the signals are not being routed properly.
In short, I think this addiction you are referring to has mostly mental as well as physical components to it. Some psychotherapy will defintily help by identifying the root of the problem as well as methods to deal with the urges. I hope you find your way. Fight on!
The bolded has no factual basis at all.
Our bodies don't know what to do with fast food? Then how do you explain this?: https://bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/hormonal-responses-fast-food-meal.html/11 -
DomesticKat wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »Usually no one wants plain spaghetti, though -- it's the combination of pasta and a sauce that normally has fat and protein in it. (Maybe I'm weird, but the sauce has always been the most important part of pasta for me, easily.)
I was a weird, picky kid and would totally eat plain pasta. I still eat plain pasta now, but I'm not picky anymore. I just love me some carby goodness. Still down almost 50lbs. and counting.
My daughter is like that too. The only thing she usually likes on it is parmesian. No butter, salt or anything else. Ick.
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I was addicted and most likely would relapse also if i gave myself the tiniest of chances.
Fast food can be a very overpowering addiction.... im pretty certain it is the type of carbs in them that make them so addictive... the dense caloric meal loaded with highly processed ingredients....
I remember getting a feeling of a rush as soon as you eat it... and then follows the psychological (guilt)... followed by the almost immediate bloat .... and the toxicity level starts to spike... liver going into hyperdrive ...
Unless you break this circuit ...it becomes a vicous cycle.32 -
"Toxicity level"?yasinbagci73 wrote: »I was addicted and most likely would relapse also if i gave myself the tiniest of chances.
Fast food can be a very overpowering addiction.... im pretty certain it is the type of carbs in them that make them so addictive... the dense caloric meal loaded with highly processed ingredients....
I remember getting a feeling of a rush as soon as you eat it... and then follows the psychological (guilt)... followed by the almost immediate bloat .... and the toxicity level starts to spike... liver going into hyperdrive ...
Unless you break this circuit ...it becomes a vicous cycle.
LOL.
Please list the known toxins in fast food.
The "psychological (guilt)" part sounds like an eating disorder to me - something along the lines of orthorexia. I feel no such guilt when I'm downing a big, juicy double bacon cheeseburger.
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The psychology behind calling it an "addiction" is actually quite simple. It removes any personal responsibility from the situation and automatically confers powerless "victim" status instead. It's much easier to justify it that way rather than having to face the fact that you actually have a choice in the matter.
I really, really love a huge, juicy burger (or two) and a mountain of french fries or onion rings. Sometimes I actually have cravings for them. Same with tacos - I can easily down them a dozen at a time without blinking an eye. I also understand that eating that way all the time is not healthy and will lead to weight gain. Therefore, I make the conscious decision to limit such indulgences rather than wallow in victimhood and pretend I have no choice.27 -
Oh, really?Fizzypopization wrote: »I'm going to blow apparently everyone's mind here, but all addictions are mental. The idea of physical addiction is a myth. That doesn't mean addiction isn't real it means we thought the cause was different. Gambling can cause brain rushes same way drugs, caffeine, and fast food does. Y'all need some actual science on this board yeesh.
Obviously you've never once ever in your life seen a heroin addict going through withdrawals. That ain't mental. In no way does it compare to somebody throwing a hissy fit because they can't have a freaking cookie or a Whopper burger.
My mind is indeed blown, but not for the reason you think.
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yasinbagci73 wrote: »I was addicted and most likely would relapse also if i gave myself the tiniest of chances.
Fast food can be a very overpowering addiction.... im pretty certain it is the type of carbs in them that make them so addictive... the dense caloric meal loaded with highly processed ingredients....
I remember getting a feeling of a rush as soon as you eat it... and then follows the psychological (guilt)... followed by the almost immediate bloat .... and the toxicity level starts to spike... liver going into hyperdrive ...
Unless you break this circuit ...it becomes a vicous cycle.
The same carbs in a homemade burger and fries– and I mean homemade, make your own buns, patties, fries– are the same ingredients you'll find in the average fast food burger and fries meal, preservatives aside. Your homemade meal might even be "worse" because unlike fast food chains, you don't have a standard weight/serving size for your meal. Maybe (probably) fast food has more sodium, different spices/cooking techniques but ultimately it's the same damn thing. Why is homemade "junk food" somehow different, or more virtuous than fast food?
I'm not a fast-food shill, in fact I haven't eaten McDonald's, Burger King etc in nearly 20 years (I'm a vegetarian, it just isn't on my radar). Honestly, that I decided to become vegetarian after a childhood of loving burgers and BBQ kind of cements my thinking that dependence on fast food doesn't equal addiction. I loved me the Hell out of cheeseburgers and fried chicken until I decided I didn't want to eat meat anymore. It wasn't easy by a long shot but I did it and that was 18 years ago. So the idea of being addicted to fast food/restaurants rubs me a bit because I honestly think it's a cop out, an easy excuse that I used for far too many years. I personally got fat because I ate too much for my activity level, period. My food choices had nothing to do with it.
You absolutely can "break this circuit", but only if you want to.14 -
DomesticKat wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »Usually no one wants plain spaghetti, though -- it's the combination of pasta and a sauce that normally has fat and protein in it. (Maybe I'm weird, but the sauce has always been the most important part of pasta for me, easily.)
I was a weird, picky kid and would totally eat plain pasta. I still eat plain pasta now, but I'm not picky anymore. I just love me some carby goodness. Still down almost 50lbs. and counting.
My daughter is like that too. The only thing she usually likes on it is parmesian. No butter, salt or anything else. Ick.
Okay, I'm a huge foodie but I will admit one of my favorite dishes is very al dente noodles doused with Kraft powdered "Parmesan". It's...it's just so chewy...4 -
The psychology behind calling it an "addiction" is actually quite simple. It removes any personal responsibility from the situation and automatically confers powerless "victim" status instead. It's much easier to justify it that way rather than having to face the fact that you actually have a choice in the matter.
Can I say thank you for expressing what I wanted to but never coherently said to post? I absolutely believe addiction exists (I mean, yeah, it's well documented and I know it myself) but the whole "sugar/specific addiction" thing has always struck me as a, "yeup, can't do anything about it, I'm addicted and all" cop out. Which is sad, because if you just accept that it's basically surrendering your own free will.
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Fizzypopization wrote: »
There is no physical hooks in alcohol to make it addictive. There is no hooks in most opioids either. If you want to say only physical hooks count then very few things could truly even count unless we are going to count the change in brain chemistry in which case literally anything could cause a flood of those hormones even fetishes. Seriously lay people with no science degree you don't know what you are talking about.paperpudding wrote: »I agree there are ED's and some people have difficulty restricting foods and there are individual trigger foods for some people and there are behavioural issues - that doesnt make there be an addiction though.
i actually think it is quite trivialising to real physical addictions like opiates,alcohol, nicotine to say this
and yes there is an organisation called Over eaters Anonymous - but I notice they do not refer to food addiction either
In their own words "Overeaters Anonymous (OA) is a fellowship of individuals who, through shared experience, strength and hope, are recovering from compulsive overeating. We welcome everyone who wants to stop eating compulsively. .......
Our primary purpose is to abstain from compulsive overeating and to carry the message of recovery to those who still suffer.
OA caters for all who have a problem with their eating, such as compulsive overeaters, anorexics and bulimics."
Some things are physically addictive - nicotine, opiates, codeine, alcohol
Other like Overeaters anonymous, Gamblers anonymous deal with behavioural disorders, not physical addictions - as I pointed out Overeaters anonymous does not describe over eating as an addiction
I do actually work in a field that includes opiate substitute program (methadone) btw.
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candylilacs wrote: »It's not the film, man.
https://mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/triglycerides/art-20048186?pg=2
Triglycerides are a type of fat (lipid) found in your blood. When you eat, your body converts any calories it doesn't need to use right away into triglycerides. The triglycerides are stored in your fat cells. Later, hormones release triglycerides for energy between meals. If you regularly eat more calories than you burn, particularly "easy" calories like carbohydrates and fats, you may have high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia).
You may. If only there were a test...
More to the point: regularly eat more calories than you burn=gain weight.
More "easy" calories like carbs and fats (note that this is silly since carbs is a huge category, as are fats), but bigger point is this does NOT single out sugar.
From this, which IMO would be better summarized as "don't become overweight, and don't eat a poor overall diet centered on sat fat and easy to digest/refined carbs" you get "sugar is the problem."
Hmm, that's certainly a distorted interpretation.
Also, NOTHING to do with the topic of this thread.
Should someone base their diet on the types of choices the majority of people order from fast food (meals made up of, say, a burger and fries)? IMO, no -- cals are too high, protein too low, percentage of sat fat and refined carbs (mostly not sugar itself, and the problem with fries is the calories and added fat, not the carby potatoes), and most significantly, inadequate vegetables. Also crazy high sodium in most cases.
Are any of these problems if you have fast food occasionally or even more regularly but make lower cal choices and have a good many veg and adequate protein in the rest of the day? No.
Does any of this have anything to do with sugar? Again, no.7 -
positivepowers wrote: »positivepowers wrote: »Katherinelittle24 wrote: »Thank you for commenting but please don't tell me that I'm not addicted. Fast food can be addictive. I did research on it, and a lot of research says it is. Some people can go and get fast food, and be fine like my boyfriend can. But other people, like me for instance, thinks about it constantly. Even the next day, I just ate a very nutritious breakfast full of protein but I am still craving that hamburger. So yes, for me it is an addiction. One that has take me months to break, and it's definitely a work of progress.
Yeah it is. If I stop eating fast food I get headaches, fuzzy thinking, lethargy, irritability and cravings that keep me up and wake me up at night. I feel just like I did when I quit smoking (and nobody argues that's addictive, right?) I don't care what anyone says, I know what I feel and some peer-reviewed scientific studies back me on this (I've posted them before.) After a few weeks of abstinence, if I go back to eating fast food (because mmm mmm Taco Bell!) The cycle starts all over. Before I am accused of this, I do not use this as an excuse, I use it as another tool to fight the addiction.
OP: I'm trying to stay away from the fast food, it's the only way I know to take and keep control. Stay strong!!
OK, I've stayed out of this whole addiction debate, but this comment got to me... specifically, which fast food is causing this reaction? Pizza? Burgers? Fries? Tacos? Milkshakes? Chicken fingers? And does eating a french fry clear your thinking, because if it does, I'm headed to McDonalds
I know you're being sarcastic but I'm going to answer this as if the question was serious: No, eating a french fry does not exactly clear my thinking, and I haven't been able to stop at one fry since I was 5 (not an excuse. We all have something that we fight; this is mine) but if I eat the fries I stop obsessing over them for a while and I can think about something else. Although I am sated for a while, eating the fries just brings on a cycle of: Obsessing over __________ fast food or junk food; eating the food; obsessing over another fast/junk food. Every time I "quit" the fast/junk food I act exactly the way I did when I quit smoking. The only difference is that I've never wanted to start smoking again. I also tend to "phase out" when eating fast/junk food, I don't realize how much I've eaten until it's gone. I once ate an entire 9" chocolate cake and I only remember "tasting" the frosting at the beginning. And throwing away the empty box in shame so my family wouldn't know.
There are probably no common ingredients in french friesn and a chocolate cake (which for many could be homemade, btw, I don't know why so many people assume "junk food" is always packaged, but that's a digression).
I'm not saying that you don't have the reaction you describe when eating them -- I find I tend to crave the foods I eat, so if I mostly (not 100%) eat nutrient-dense foods I will mostly crave the kinds of things I was planning to have anyway.
What I am saying is that this is NOT evidence of addiction to a specific substance, as was claimed. It's support for the idea that some (for a variety of reasons, often a pattern of using food for self comfort, maybe something physical, probably related to feeling bad about eating habits and thinking you should restrict or not eat certain things) will find it really hard to control foods they find hyperpalatable.
IMO, you can probably change, to some degree, what foods you really enjoy or crave (or consider hyperpalatable -- I honestly don't get why people even think fast food is so tasty vs. other options, other options that might be even more caloric in some cases, granted -- and I admit I'm being a bit of a food snob here, it's just my response to some of the things people claim are magically and unfairly tasty is that they aren't even all that tasty vs., say, better restaurants or homemade). You can also perhaps find a way to moderate -- for example, if you know you can have fries every week, it may well be easier not to think of them at other times. Or not, people find what works for them. Point is just this does not support the idea that "fast food" as a category is an addictive substance. It is made up of a huge variety of ingredients that are also in non fast food foods (see, eg, homemade burger and roasted potatoes with some salt and olive oil). I don't think any fast food measures up to a well roasted chicken with perfectly roasted potatoes (in some of the chicken fat) and brussels sprouts. But many of the reasons that's so tasty (mix of fat, protein, carbs and salt, for example), are going to overlap why fast food is tasty for many.7 -
yasinbagci73 wrote: »Fast food can be a very overpowering addiction.... im pretty certain it is the type of carbs in them that make them so addictive...
Main carbs in a burger and fries: potatoes.
Second main carb: bread.
Homemade burger plus roasted potatoes and a salad -- also gets most of its carbs from potatoes and bread (and may well have as many carbs).
Main difference between my homemade burger and a fast food meal:
Fast food burger has more fat than one I'd cook at home (mainly because I use leaner ground beef, not everyone does), and don't add oil when cooking (I suspect McD does but have not checked).
Also, even as someone who doesn't understand the love for fast food, on the rare times I get it (road trip!) I do get fries. If I made a burger at home (which I did quite a bit when losing), I'd not actually choose to have a bun AND additional starchy carbs most of the time (on rare occasion I would have roasted potatoes or maybe baked beans). I'd also have vegetables. Of course, at a fast food place nothing is stopping you from getting a burger and salad and not having fries. Everyone knows fries are a treat food you are getting because they taste good, despite being high cal.5 -
yasinbagci73 wrote: »I was addicted and most likely would relapse also if i gave myself the tiniest of chances.
Fast food can be a very overpowering addiction.... im pretty certain it is the type of carbs in them that make them so addictive... the dense caloric meal loaded with highly processed ingredients....
I remember getting a feeling of a rush as soon as you eat it... and then follows the psychological (guilt)... followed by the almost immediate bloat .... and the toxicity level starts to spike... liver going into hyperdrive ...
Unless you break this circuit ...it becomes a vicous cycle.
How are the carbs in fast food different than the carbs in the same food items made at home?
In the last two weeks I’ve eaten at Panera twice: Chipotle chicken salad and creamy tomato soup and then an egg white spinach avocado breakfast sandwich, and then on a recent road trip a McDouble, splitting a small fry with my husband. No rush, no guilt, no bloat, and certainly no signs of toxicity. Also what is the common ingredient in any of these things which would be addictive?10 -
The psychology behind calling it an "addiction" is actually quite simple. It removes any personal responsibility from the situation and automatically confers powerless "victim" status instead. It's much easier to justify it that way rather than having to face the fact that you actually have a choice in the matter.
I really, really love a huge, juicy burger (or two) and a mountain of french fries or onion rings. Sometimes I actually have cravings for them. Same with tacos - I can easily down them a dozen at a time without blinking an eye. I also understand that eating that way all the time is not healthy and will lead to weight gain. Therefore, I make the conscious decision to limit such indulgences rather than wallow in victimhood and pretend I have no choice.
Including this thread, there are three “addiction” topics on the front page of recent posts right now: Fast Food, Soda, and Desserts
I agree, I think people want to blame something or someone else - so it’s easy to talk about the evil sugar or the evil food manufacturers who have created these hyperpalatable foods which we are all incapable of falling victim to. When people point out that it is possible to moderate these kinds of foods and be successful, then everyone says “well SOME people get addicted”. When people point out that the same ingredients or combinations of ingredients exist in home prepared foods - well I’ve yet to see a single response to these points. I suspect we won’t.
Calling everything an addiction in order to abscond personal responsibility is offensive to those struggling with legitimate addiction and recovery, and it also diminishes the hard work of people who have struggled with cravings and trigger foods and learned to moderate and be successful.20 -
WinoGelato wrote: »yasinbagci73 wrote: »I was addicted and most likely would relapse also if i gave myself the tiniest of chances.
Fast food can be a very overpowering addiction.... im pretty certain it is the type of carbs in them that make them so addictive... the dense caloric meal loaded with highly processed ingredients....
I remember getting a feeling of a rush as soon as you eat it... and then follows the psychological (guilt)... followed by the almost immediate bloat .... and the toxicity level starts to spike... liver going into hyperdrive ...
Unless you break this circuit ...it becomes a vicous cycle.
How are the carbs in fast food different than the carbs in the same food items made at home?
In the last two weeks I’ve eaten at Panera twice: Chipotle chicken salad and creamy tomato soup and then an egg white spinach avocado breakfast sandwich, and then on a recent road trip a McDouble, splitting a small fry with my husband. No rush, no guilt, no bloat, and certainly no signs of toxicity. Also what is the common ingredient in any of these things which would be addictive?
When I make french fries at home using basic ingredients (potato, oil, salt), I get the exact same feelings I do when I eat "fast food" fries or fries made from scratch in a restaurant. I feel pleasure while eating them, I want to eat more because they taste good (note: these are the exact same feelings I feel when eating other favorite foods, whether they're from a fast food place or another source). You'd think if fast food made a difference there would be some sort of difference in how I felt, but I honestly don't think there is.
I've notice the same thing with other people. People who enjoy burgers tend to enjoy different types of burgers, not just fast food ones. If fast food truly was addictive, wouldn't we see people abandon "slower" forms of typical fast food items in favor of the more addictive versions?11 -
candylilacs wrote: »Sugar is the enemy -- 84.1 million adults have prediabetes. https://cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/diabetes.html
84 million adults overeat is more like it.11 -
candylilacs wrote: »Sugar is the enemy -- 84.1 million adults have prediabetes. https://cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/diabetes.html
News flash - sugar intake does not cause diabetes.
Obesity, however, is strongly linked to it.11
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