Unhealthy relationships with food....

"In much the same way as a smoker is PHYSICALLY addicted to cigarettes "


Cigarettes and food are not the same thing. You can quit smoking and enhance your health. Quit eating and you die. For the very last time, FOOD IS NOT ADDICTIVE. Not in any way, shape, or form. I am by no means a "know it all." I was offering the OP wholesome advice and support. Your unhealthy belief that food is addictive explains why you are being so adamant about it - you need to blame something other than yourself! You do not want to let go because if you do then you'll actually have to deal with the root of your behavior. If food is no longer to blame, you'll have to look inward. You do have issues you need to deal with at some point, otherwise permanent weight loss will almost certainly never happen for you. Find a local therapist and good luck to you.

From www.webmd.com: Mental Health and Food Addiction

People who are addicted to food tend to display many of the characteristics of addicts and alcoholics. Food addicts develop a physical, mental, emotional craving and chemical addiction to food. The characteristics of food addicts can include:

Being obsessed and/or preoccupied with food.
Having a lack of self-control when it comes to food.
Having a compulsion about food in which eating results in a cycle of bingeing despite negative consequences.
Remembering a sense of pleasure and/or comfort with food and being unable to stop using food to create a sense of pleasure and comfort.
Having a need to eat which results in a physical craving.

____________________________________________

That being said, I have an addictive personality. If I let myself, I'd be an alcoholic. I'd also gamble away everything I have. Instead, I've turned to food. I'm also addicted to certain aspects of food - the chemicals in diet soda, the artificial sweeteners in a lot of carbs, etc. It is up to us to use this forum in a way that supports one another so that we can break down the issues and find a way past them to a healthier lifestyle. I liked the suggestion of only eating at certain times of the day (which I'm trying with my crazy schedule). I also know that for myself, having the scale out in plain view in the bathroom is just asking for trouble on a daily basis. I need to put it away and only take it out on my weigh-in day.

Please don't let any negativity get you down. You are smart to be here and asking for help. If you attempt to make changes and you find that you need more, please ask your doctor. There are so many resources available.

Not to stir the pot any more but...i will

If going strictly by the DSM-IV and a psychiatric view, the definition of addiction currently only encompasses substances which induce physical dependence. In comparison, something like pathologic gambling is considered an impulse control disorder and not an addiction (even though the term gambling addiction is widely, if incorrectly, used). However, medicine is a constantly evolving field and new ideas and theories are being explored every day. There is a branch of addiction medicine which has recently defined addiction as the following:
http://www.asam.org/research-treatment/definition-of-addiction

So basically, the concept of addiction is being studied. The human brain is complex, and the difference and/or interaction between impulse control and addiction is also complex. :flowerforyou: (that was my peace offering)

To the OP, I definitely have found myself focusing a lot on food during this journey. Because I am trying to develop a new, more healthy relationship with food, I do have to dedicate a lot of thought, time and effort to planning my day around my calorie goal. I have a lot of weight to lose and a lot of exercise to do in order to be healthy and I do feel guilty if I slip. However, I think this can be a slippery slope and it's all about balance. If you are trying to punish yourself with food, it may be worthwhile to take a deep breath, step back and reassess. I agree with others. It may be an excellent idea to meet with a nutritionist or a group who can help put things into perspective and help you form healthy goals regarding your weight. If you felt it was to a point where you needed to reach out in this forum, maybe it's time to reach out a bit closer to home. :flowerforyou: I wish you all the best on your journey!

"For the very last time, FOOD IS NOT ADDICTIVE. "

... I'd have to question this statement a little, given that there have been countless studies done and books written about the addictive qualities of some types of food... SOME types, so maybe ALL food isn't addictive, but there are certainly types, junk food in particular, laden with sugars and fats that people can become addicted to.

Agree. DuChene2012 .... I understand where you are coming from and you say you work with obese people etc and use DSM-IV .... but your opinion is that - your opinion. I think where you have ruffled is not the fact that you have a strong opinion on a certain faculty of the subject but the tone and "my word is law" aggressive tone.

Like this other poster there are various medical studies that say SOME types of food are addictive ... not saying all and mainly they are those who ingest large quantities of certain TYPES of food and pretty much are the obese or morbidly obese variety.

Even using the DSM-IV and relating to food addiction, there are some doctors, studies, trials that have shown that some foods give the physiological effects of addiction (much like drugs). I.e. certain drugs that are used as a temporary measure to stave off the physiological effects of heroin where used on some candidates that were seemingly assessed with being addicted to chocolate and the results were the same. Others were also given drugs who were seemingly addicted to certain foods ... but with no effect.

Other studies, like this Harvard Study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, show similar effects to an alcoholic.

http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/291/23/2828.abstract

Again, I do understand what you are saying about not making excuses etc and yes, that was the same in the case for me. I just drank a helluva lot of alcohol at uni and ate loads. No junk but vast quantities. SOme people do make excuses and i used to be one of them.

But at the same time, with the crux of your argument, there are many medical studies that say otherwise, so please accept that.

"Um, no. There is such a thing as food addiction AND there are patterns that push us to raid the fridge. It helps to deal with both."


Uh, sorry but you are not correct. Food is NOT an addictive property. Food is NOT a drug. It's just the easiest element to turn to when things turn south! The term "food addiction" is linked to a psychological behavior pattern to describe the end-result of triggers that prompt a person to use food as a source of comfort.

You can have a psychological addiction. Don't brush that off, they are incredibly powerful.

Look up inside out weight loss. This is dealing with why you think about food all the time and what positive thing you are getting out of not losing weight. This information really got me thinking about issues instead of focusing on food. I lost all of my cravings and compulsive eating. I haven't lost a lot of weight yet. I still have to learn more of what and how much to eat, but tracking all of my food here has really helped me to see how many calories are in some of what I thought were fairly healthy favorites.

Read the following:

http://www.democracyinstitute.org/announcements/patrick-basham-and-john-luik-on-the-food-addiction-myth

Since all "food addiction" theories are based SOLELY on rat studies, I hope this finally puts the entire myth to bed.

In all the years as a clinical professional I've worked in hospitals and treatment centers and I have to tell you...NO ONE has ever been admitted for food overdose! I've seen alcohol and drug overdose cases, but never in my years of working with patients has food addiction ever been a condition that a hospital - or a psychotherapist - can actually code and bill for, because it isn't a real condition! Ladies, I'm not being *****y about this, just practical, realistic, and scientifically truthful. I would love to say I'm addicted to chocolate or cheesecake or fast food, but that would just be me lying to myself and avoiding the true stimulus driving my behavior. For those who adamantly cling to their belief that food is actually addictive, I feel sorry for you in that you are blocking yourself from acknowledging and therefore addressing the real reason behind why you eat (or over-eat) what you do. Blaming something else does not help your situation - or others when you push such beliefs onto them. In fact, those types of beliefs actually impede your and others' success. Since our beliefs shape our behavior and ultimately our environment, it's easy to see why some of you who are overly heated in this topic cannot let go of this simple truth. Letting go forces you to deal, and all too often that can be an unbearably painful concept. In time, if working with a therapist, hopefully the pain will be bearable enough to handle little by little.

Addictive personalities can be quite difficult to work with, and I applaud those of you who struggle with that condition and I wish the very best success for you. Those with addictive personalities will cling to one thing, and then the next, and the next, etc once one "vice" after the other is removed. It's like prying one's fingers off the ledge, only to have them cling to the nearby drain pipe with the other hand.

For those of you who think about food 24/7, this is not addiction, it is obsession. Sure, the body hungers for sustenance when blood glucose levels drop but that does not remotely justify the notion of addiction. Hunger and craving are two separate biological pathways. Even dehydration defeats the "addiction" theory: we can't live long without water. If dehydration becomes severe, the body ceases to desire fluids. Is this withdrawal and recovery? No, it is the body shutting down all systems one by one. It's called dying. When nutrition is withheld, hunger may initiate the desire to fuel the body and brain, but when hunger is ignored the body powers down and switches into starvation mode, tearing down muscle mass, and then finally fat mass, to reconvert it into fuel. After awhile malnutrition sets in and hunger will also turn off.

Yes, there is one component of food (caffeine) that can become addictive, like smoking or alcoholism, when ingested often enough in large enough quantities over time. The difference between true addictions vs. the notion of food addiction is that, when the body receives a truly addictive substance (cocaine, alcohol, meth, nicotene, caffeine) the body goes into withdrawal when that chemical is withheld. Addictive substances such as these actually replace certain hormones in the body; the body ceases to produce them on its own. When that drug is withheld, the body's pathway to re-synthesize this hormone will be stunted for a time - hence the withdrawal - until the body can once again regain its homeostatic function. This never ever happens with food. Food does not mimic any hormone, so withdrawal is impossible. NO ONE ever goes into "food withdrawal" because food addiction does not exist. It is just pure, simple logic.

The notion of sugar addiction is also a false one. Sugar ingestion ramps up the levels of blood glucose, initiating a large insulin response and a tingly feeling/energy burst in the body from the large quantity of sugar. Once glucose has been taken up into the red blood cells, the insulin levels drop dramatically and that is how a "sugar high" and how "crashing" occurs. The body does not crave sugar; it merely switches on the hunger cues in order to normalize glucose levels. What foods are known to quickly rebuild that ramp? Sugar! It's a no-win cycle, sort of like the cycle of a battered woman and her mate. It is the psyche which craves sugar. As I've said, the body craves only those chemical substances which mimic naturally occurring hormones. Sugar cannot mimic any hormone, therefore it is not an addictive substance.

This subject has taken up far too much of my time, and now I am done with it. This debate has been quite stimulating, thank you. I hope this has increased your understanding of the difference between true addiction and the myth of food addiction.

Please don't feed the trolls.

^^like