does/did anyone else have any struggles with feeling bad about wasting or throwing away food and just eating it because you feel bad throwing it out or letting it go bad?

if my parents have something in the fridge or around the kitchen and I see it's not being eaten and is going to go bad, I eat it. So sometimes I eat stuff I shouldn't plus my healthy stuff I buy for on plan, because I don't want that to go to waste either.

I read on past posts, some people were given cookies, donuts, cakes and other food by coworkers or friends and when the person isn't looking they simply throw it away... if it's me I actually feel GUILTY throwing it away thinking someone went through the trouble to make something or give me it, so I should eat it.

If I had kids, and my kids had left overs on their plates or didn't want to eat something given to them, I'd probably be the mom that eats it because I feel bad throwing it away.

I don't know why I do this... not sure if it's because I feel it's wasting money throwing it away, or when I was a kid in school teachers constantly told us about starving kids in Africa and to be grateful for the food we have.

I know it's silly to feel bad or guilty throwing it away, it's not helping anything eating it, it shouldn't matter if it goes in the trash or I eat it, since it's not doing myself any favors, if food is bought it's bought, eating it won't change that... but... ugh.. it's just become a habit that I haven't been able to kick yet.

Does anyone know where I'm coming from with this? Any words of wisdom to get past it?

Yes! I really do know this feeling!

I'm getting better at it, though; yesterday evening I couldn't finish my dinner, there was just a little bit left, so into the bin it went. And this morning I found some fruit in the fridge that needed tossing, so it got tossed.

I don't think I know any "strategies" to help. But if food's been in the cupboard or fridge for too long, it's not going to be good to eat anyway. We don't have an obligation to eat everything that's in front of our noses (maybe we should buy less, but that's somewhere else in the process). No-one else is going to eat it; it's not going to help starving orphans; we definitely shouldn't abuse and hurt ourselves by stuffing more down ourselves than we need to be healthy. Like a colleage said to me a few weeks ago (about something different, but hey): it's time to be a selfish cow. Do what's good for you. Make yourself a priority. If we don't take good care of ourselves...we're not going to be able to look after others anyway.

I hope some of that made sense, lol

(Random note: the dancing carrot in the smilies panel is bopping precisely to the beat of the song on the radio. Funny and weird.)

Think of it like this...how are you putting that food to good use? If you're not wasting it, then you're putting it to good use...right? No...you're still wasting it, just in your body. If your body doesn't need it, it's the same as throwing it away when you throw it in your mouth.
I feel guilty when I make too much food, and it starts to go bad...but right now, I live with my sister who has 4 dogs. I just feed the leftovers to them when it looks like no one is going to eat it. I obviously don't give them rich or chocolately things. Honestly, though...if it goes in the trash, then it ends up disintegrating and becoming soil again. You're not wasting it.

I agree with salsa chip. Either way it's getting wasted. Your body doesn't deserve that crap, anyways. Your body deserves healthy, nutritious food because YOU deserve to be healthy and happy. You're worth more than someone elses leftovers.

If you absolutely cannot throw it away, pack it up in a little container, stick it in the back of fridge and forget about it until the next day or the day after. If its truly entered into the territory of old leftovers, you might feel better about throwing it away. If you wouldn't give it to your kids, why would you eat it?

I too still struggle with this one. Someone once put it to me this way, "Why am I treating my body like a garbage dump?" It's getting better and yeah, I was that mom finishing my kids' plates. Believe me, it didn't help me at all.

I had that mentality. It's from my mom. She's always been on the slender side and recently she's started making less dinner because all of us were cutting our portions. Not too many leftovers, maybe 2 tbsp of each, so I'd have it for dinner the following night. I used to have a problem with throwing away food as well, until I moved in with my husband, who never has a problem with this. He was the one who pointed this out to me: If you are full, why are you overeating? If it's going to go bad, why are you poisoning yourself? Just throw it out! At first, I would get upset with him for throwing out food, but now I have come to realize that it's not helping me any by eating it all when I have no need for that food. Also, I've tried to overcome this throwing-out mentality by cooking less. That seems to help. I've also started eating more fruit in the beginning of the week, before it spoils so that we either eat it all fresh or we throw away maybe one or two.

i just did this the other day XD it was fettuccine alfredo, god it was so good!

But yes, i have guilt tripped myself many times eating leftovers because they are "there" and i don't want them to go bad.

I think this habit is instilled in people because they are brought up with parents who say "There are people starving over in 'so and so'." So we tend to eat every bite to avoid wasting.

My husband is HORRIBLE about that...he'll fill his plate and get full before it's all gone. But he feels obligated to finish what's on his plate. In his case he was raised by an abusive man who literally wouldn't allow them up from the table at dinner (on the nights he didn't turn it over and dump food in the floor) until plates were clean. So he got used to turning his brain and feelings of fullness OFF to accomplish the task.

I'm finally convincing him it's OK to leave food on a plate.

A little quote comes to mind:

"25 year ago I was told to finish what's on my plate because there are starving kids in Africa. Here, I am, 25 years later, still fat and there are still kids starving in Africa."

It is without a doubt MUCH more wasteful to eat when not hungry and to eat foods that are not good for you and will compromise your health.

Better to put it in the garbage, then to BE the garbage.

I really don't have much of an issue throwing away food. I toss egg yolks down the garbage disposal all the time. Most of the things I cook are just for myself and my boyfriend and there are times when a recipe calls for an ingredient that is smaller than I can buy. If I can't reuse it in a timely manner, I toss it out. I try hard to only buy and cook things that we will quickly use up, but I would much rather throw it away then feel the guilt of eating those unwanted calories.

there is also the option to incorporate leftovers into your food plan as lunch or dinner the following day...but if the food is unhealthy for you or truly on the verge of going bad it's like anything else that's not good for you - let it go! then pat yourself on the back for treating yourself well : ) I've learned to practice what I call the 50% rule...if I go out to eat or order in I only eat 50% The rest goes in the trash. My mom is horrified that I waste food and money this way, but it's the only way I can lessen the damage when I make not so healthy food choices.

Repeat after me. I am not a garbage can!

I agree

Julie took the words right out of my mouth. "I am not a garbage can."