What"s Eating You? Obesity and Obsession in America
Six million Americans are afflicted with undiagnosed diabetes.
These walking time bombs don't even realize they've got diabetes until it causes severe physical problems.
Since a staggering ninety percent of diabetics are overweight, we can connection to the disease and obsession with certain foods.
According to Kay Shepherd, a pioneer in the field of food addiction, there is a biochemical condition in the body that creates a physiological craving for certain foods.
For the most part these are simple carbohydrates, sweeteners, fats and processed foods.
These foods appear to affect the same addictive brain pathways as alcohol and drugs.
Take a look at what the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association classifies as an addiction and see if it applies to the excess use of food: * Tolerance: The person needs increasing amounts of the substance over time to achieve the same results * Withdrawal: If the substance is stopped there are physical and or psychological symptoms.
* Unintentional overuse of the substance.
* Persistent attempts to control, cut back, or stop the use of the substance have been unsuccessful.
* Preoccupation with the substance: Rituals in obtaining, using, and recovering from the use of it.
* Reduced social, occupational or recreational activities in order to "use".
* Continued use of substance despite recurrent physical or psychological problems from it What part of this do we not understand about food and its misuse? Despite dire physical consequences, many failed diets, the shame and guilt associated with over-eating behavior, the preoccupation with food continues.
What are reasonable solutions that work? Here is what NEEDS to happen in order to reverse the effects of diabetes and obesity: * Reach and maintain reasonable body weight * Make wise food choices.
* Reduce sodium and alcohol intake.
* Be physically active every day.
I only have to look around me to see that doing these four things is not easy or obesity would not be our number one public health issue.
If this were easy obese individuals would be doing these things and they'd slim down.
Since good health is not happening in many people's lives, we have to understand the underlying problems in order to understand their powerlessness over harmful behaviors.
Here is the mental health issue full blown! If we know something is destructive, why continue to do it? Ask any of us who have tried to stop smoking, stay on a diet, break our addiction to soft drinks, caffeine, or other behaviors or substances.
When a behavior is chronic it requires more than an attempt to control.
Here are some suggestions on how to get started: * Make a commitment to yourself.
In other words, DECIDE to change.
* Set a date to get started.
Notice I said get started.
In other words to start taking some action.
In my case, when I finally made a decision to let go of my nicotine addiction l knew better that to think I could just get out of bed one day and quit! So I made a plan.
I bought a couple of quit smoking books and I talked to friends about how to find other people who had quit that I could talk to about how they did it.
A set up for failure when you're learning to manage any out of control behavior is to think you can get up and stop doing it without any preparation of the mind.
We need only to remember the many "Monday morning diets" to know this is true.
Think ahead of what might cause you to fail so you are prepared.
* See the big picture.
Do not get hung up on the day by day number on the scale.
It will discourage you.
The big picture is about reclaiming your body and being healthy.
Stay focused on the real goal.
* Get counseling to work through the reasons you eat in the first place and to learn the art of loving yourself ...
yes and that includes your body! * Above all, know ahead of time that you will relapse.
Be prepared to not slide totally back into your old behavior by beating yourself up.
Instead use the experience to learn what you need to do next.
While anyone who has ever battled an obsession can relate to eating as one, we first have to call it what it is before we can solve it.
Understanding it really isn't just about the food is a first step.
* Find a support group specific to your problem.
AA is for drinking, there's EA (eaters anonymous) for over eating, I went to smokers anonymous.
There is much to learn from a twelve step model such as AA.
One of their great sayings is "I get drunk, we stay sober".
Never try and combat an addiction alone.
You are likely to fail if you have the "I can do this by myself.
I don't need anyone" attitude.
These walking time bombs don't even realize they've got diabetes until it causes severe physical problems.
Since a staggering ninety percent of diabetics are overweight, we can connection to the disease and obsession with certain foods.
According to Kay Shepherd, a pioneer in the field of food addiction, there is a biochemical condition in the body that creates a physiological craving for certain foods.
For the most part these are simple carbohydrates, sweeteners, fats and processed foods.
These foods appear to affect the same addictive brain pathways as alcohol and drugs.
Take a look at what the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association classifies as an addiction and see if it applies to the excess use of food: * Tolerance: The person needs increasing amounts of the substance over time to achieve the same results * Withdrawal: If the substance is stopped there are physical and or psychological symptoms.
* Unintentional overuse of the substance.
* Persistent attempts to control, cut back, or stop the use of the substance have been unsuccessful.
* Preoccupation with the substance: Rituals in obtaining, using, and recovering from the use of it.
* Reduced social, occupational or recreational activities in order to "use".
* Continued use of substance despite recurrent physical or psychological problems from it What part of this do we not understand about food and its misuse? Despite dire physical consequences, many failed diets, the shame and guilt associated with over-eating behavior, the preoccupation with food continues.
What are reasonable solutions that work? Here is what NEEDS to happen in order to reverse the effects of diabetes and obesity: * Reach and maintain reasonable body weight * Make wise food choices.
* Reduce sodium and alcohol intake.
* Be physically active every day.
I only have to look around me to see that doing these four things is not easy or obesity would not be our number one public health issue.
If this were easy obese individuals would be doing these things and they'd slim down.
Since good health is not happening in many people's lives, we have to understand the underlying problems in order to understand their powerlessness over harmful behaviors.
Here is the mental health issue full blown! If we know something is destructive, why continue to do it? Ask any of us who have tried to stop smoking, stay on a diet, break our addiction to soft drinks, caffeine, or other behaviors or substances.
When a behavior is chronic it requires more than an attempt to control.
Here are some suggestions on how to get started: * Make a commitment to yourself.
In other words, DECIDE to change.
* Set a date to get started.
Notice I said get started.
In other words to start taking some action.
In my case, when I finally made a decision to let go of my nicotine addiction l knew better that to think I could just get out of bed one day and quit! So I made a plan.
I bought a couple of quit smoking books and I talked to friends about how to find other people who had quit that I could talk to about how they did it.
A set up for failure when you're learning to manage any out of control behavior is to think you can get up and stop doing it without any preparation of the mind.
We need only to remember the many "Monday morning diets" to know this is true.
Think ahead of what might cause you to fail so you are prepared.
* See the big picture.
Do not get hung up on the day by day number on the scale.
It will discourage you.
The big picture is about reclaiming your body and being healthy.
Stay focused on the real goal.
* Get counseling to work through the reasons you eat in the first place and to learn the art of loving yourself ...
yes and that includes your body! * Above all, know ahead of time that you will relapse.
Be prepared to not slide totally back into your old behavior by beating yourself up.
Instead use the experience to learn what you need to do next.
While anyone who has ever battled an obsession can relate to eating as one, we first have to call it what it is before we can solve it.
Understanding it really isn't just about the food is a first step.
* Find a support group specific to your problem.
AA is for drinking, there's EA (eaters anonymous) for over eating, I went to smokers anonymous.
There is much to learn from a twelve step model such as AA.
One of their great sayings is "I get drunk, we stay sober".
Never try and combat an addiction alone.
You are likely to fail if you have the "I can do this by myself.
I don't need anyone" attitude.
