Mental Addiction to FOOD
 

Hello everyone, I just wanted to receive some support about a really annoying and depressing issue I have been having. I have began a diet on January 28 2015 and in the past week or so I have been fantasizing about food. There are a few certain types (sugar, salt/cheese) and when I say this I mean I am thinking about it many many times a day and I also have images floundering around in my mind. I got very close to caving in yesterday after work, but didn't and I am proud of myself. Does anyone else have this obsession and fantasize about food? I feel like when I'm thinking about it I get elated, happy, even high! Just would like some pointers and/or advice on this matter. Thank you.

Oh, Ps- I ordered L-Glutamine because I read online it can help with sugar and carb cravings, but then I realized perhaps this is not for mental cravings, but only bodily cravings? Oy vey.

I wouldn't classify this as an addiction. It is natural reaction that your body has when you deprive it of what it wants. Dieting and restriction makes one incredibly preoccupied with food to the point of obsession sometimes. Usually it is only a matter of time before a dieter caves in and blows their diet. Then the dieter blames himself for their weakness. That's why diets do not work, have never worked and will never work.

I hardly ever eat popcorn. I never think about it, only when I go to the movies which is sadly only a couple of times a year. But if I suddenly said to myself No More Popcorn I guarantee you that it's the first thing I'll crave and continue to crave until I get it. By restricting popcorn I've created an emotional charge with this food that heightens my desire for it. It's a classic example of how dieting not only fails to cause weight loss but actually damages a person's self esteem, and increases dysfunctional eating.

Have some cheese. Eat something salty. Calm those cravings before they get totally out of control and you find yourself face first in a full blown binge.

I definitely believe in the existence of food addiction and when someone denies this fact, it really frustrates me. The reason diets don't work is the same reason why drinking in moderation doesn't work for alcoholics and using heroine in moderation is not going to work for a heroine addict.

I've met people with multiple addictions and they have found food addiction to be the most difficult to manage.

Not all people who struggle with their weight are food addicts but to deny the existence of food addiction is very frustrating to those of us who suffer with it on a daily basis.

As far as advice, I can't tell you what would work for you...you have to discover that for yourself and sometimes, something will work for a while and then it doesn't. I can share with you what tends to help me.

First, I try to stay away from refined sugar and white flour. The less I have the easier it is for me to eat in a way that supports my health. I also find it helpful to count calories. Helps to keep me accountable and without it, I have no idea how I'm doing. Honestly, my brain just isn't normal when it comes to food.

Exercise is very good because it helps me have my head on straight and sets the tone for a healthy day.

I have days when I'm doing better than others, but in general, I struggle and obsess all day long. I have gained and lost the same 50-70lbs. more times than I can remember. I want to eat with reckless abandon and when I binge, I eat until I feel sick and then I keep going beyond that point. It's really horrible and a terrible way to live. I try to remind myself of how much better I feel when I'm on track and that it's not worth it, but it's a struggle which I wish I didn't have.

There's now some research which suggests that gut bacteria can cause cravings so part of it could be physical.

I also read a study that people who had a craving for something and they visualized themselves eating that thing in great detail ended up losing the desire for that food item much better than those who didn't try to visualize that item. I've tried to use this strategy before and I"ve found that it can help a little.

If I"m really going crazy with cravings, I'll chew gum or even try doing something else to distract myself (cleaning, going for a walk, reading something, etc.).

Best of luck to you.

It can be frustrating if people don't agree with our every belief but c'est la vie. Not sure the OP was making a real case about food addiction though, neither was my post am attack on the concept of food addiction. Sounds like a touchy subject for you.

Thanks for both of your replies, I was not asking either of you to validate weather I had a food addiction or not, for I have struggled on this path for 11 years now--was just trying to break the ice here with a current situation I am faced with. You both were incredibly helpful, I appreciate it more than you know. :D

oh! Edit: I did "cave in" and bought a low-carb, low-sugar chocolate bar last night and ate it in its entirety. I wouldn't dare categorize this as a binge; but it did soothe my gnawing infatuation with this one food in particular. Today I woke up, and of course weighed my self IMMEDIATELY and did not "f_&k myself" in the process." I am proud of myself for the way I handled that situation and the mindset that came through. I am happy today and so far the craving/mental obsession has not come ::crosses fingers::

I'm definitely a food addict too. Some of it is physical, like eating sugar and craving more sugar. A lot of it is psychological.

My obsession about food is more thinking about the next meal, even as I'm eating the current one! It sometimes feels like all I do is plot what I'm going to eat, what I might eat, what I could eat, what I should eat, what I shouldn't eat, etc., etc. For some reason it's been less so lately, at least.

Perhaps you are NOT eating enough of the right foods to really fill you up, so you always feel hungry?

Very normal. Happens to me all the time. The trick is to transition to foods that are good for you so you start fantasizing about those instead, and eating them. I have to be careful though, because even healthy fantasies can chase up on me. Honey and dark chocolate are the ones I need to really watch. Both healthy in themselves, but only in moderation.

The human condition is to be addicted to food. It's what keeps us alive. Just get addicted to the healthy stuff and you will be fine.

The way you do that is to find healthy foods that you enjoy eating and eating them. Instead of stuff that is less healthy. The body soon adjusts. I even enjoy most healthy foods now more than the less healthy ones (but gotta watch that honey and dark chocolate Ian!!!).

I fantasize about food all the time, buying it and eating it.

And then I do buy it and eat it!

There is nothing I like more on a long run to think about what I am gonna eat afterwards.

I Chew Gum All Day Every Day and Night Too.....
 

If i don't I immediately begin to binge on stuff i would NOT normally find myself eating. Then I can't stop eating until i crash . Then I wake up and realize i was a bad girl, and go on a Crash Diet for the next 3 Days, and this cycle is like ,"The Bunnny Hop." Any advice???I saw a specialist both for ED and Dietician, and i think i bored them into preaching the Nutrition Triangle to me , both of them. They thought they could EXPAND my mind, but only my butt became more expanded as a rebellious result in the END.Any advice.:dizzy:
P.S. now I need a TMJ, jaw splint too, or it's been recommended. But then I couldn't eat whenever and would feel Controlled by a force greater than myself. When I binge even though I'm ,"Out of control, I also feel,'In the driver's seat too.' "

And the problem with chewing gum is what?

I say do it. Pick your poison.

had a nightmare about binging last night...ate a few boxes of the old school 1/2 gallon cardboard ice cream boxes, and then i went outside of wherever i was and my dad was there like what did you just do? (he never scolded me for that so it was very odd) then i was stomping around the street going why did i do that?

I love this post so much, goodness.

I think that almost every dieter struggles with the idea that they might be addicted to food. I did when I was still dieting. It is an incredibly common phenomenon amongst dieters, there's a clear pattern between dieting and obsession with food /:

The explanation is probably that dieting causes obsession with food. That's pretty much it. Lol.

There are ways to overcome your cravings until they eventually disappear forever but the first step is quitting dieting and quitting restriction of any kind. Otherwise your brain will still keep reacting with "OMG FOOD! MORE MORE MORE." and you'll be fighting this battle for as long as you want to maintain your weight loss, aka forever.

I agree about how restricting certain groups or types of food can lead to wanting to overeat them. I never cared about sugar until so many people were like 'omg sugar is the devil' lol. I dunno, I just want to eat healthy. I know I abuse food as an anti anxiety self medicating activity.

I teach women about this issue...I struggled with this area too, one of the things that you have to realize is, when did you decide you could not have just one? There's usually a distinct moment that happened in the brain that caused you to create in your mind, "I can't have just one..." And then you re create that situation. Because we create what we think about.

this is a spiral form of thought, a bunch of intense thoughts jumbled up together that is creating this for you.

let me know if you need more help here.

I agree. What we believe is how we behave.

F.