Food: friend or foe? a quick insight into food addiction (and not a diet advice in sight)

I often get asked why it is easier for some people to quit smoking, even though nicotine is one of the most addictive substances on earth, than to stop over-eating.

The answer is relatively straightforward: it is easier to eliminate cigarettes from your day than eating because you simply cannot give up food.

So the reality is that three to five times every day, you have to go back to a substance that got you into trouble in the first place, and you're told in a not really helpful manner that you "just have to control your intake better". It is a hard job to to quit something that you need to survive.

What is the answer then, to overcome a food-addiction, as abstinence is just not possible?

One part is the management of the physical addiction.
The usual strategies apply, with a gradual reduction for example.
Then there needs to be a shift in your relationship with food, to go back to a more natural "food in response to hunger" approach. That also entails re-introducing slow, conscious eating in lieu of fast scoffing down whilst working or watching TV.

Another part is the emotional addiction, when we eat not to satisfy our body's need for fuel, but rather to reward ourselves, or soothe ourselves, or to replace a feeling of emotional emptiness by a feeling of physical fullness.

In the same way as festive alcohol is about sharing a good time, eating good food with good friends is highly unlikely to get you addicted. Think of the difference of having a Nutella Crêpes party with friends as opposed to eating Nutella out of a jar on your own at 1am.

My one tip? If you want to eat something that is supposed to be "bad for you" (though I don't subscribe to that terminology), you might as well enjoy it. Think of all the ways you can describe it, eat it slowly, smell it, taste it, and relish it. Do it sitting down at the table, from a nice plate, with the lights on. Better even, get a friend to share it with you.

Why go through all that trouble? Because the more you deprive yourself, the more you will obsess about it - and that obsession will drive you to over-indulge.

For the emotional eater, it might be useful to take some time to find out what you are trying to replace with food. Love? company? self-esteem?

My role as a therapist is to support you to find other ways, your way, to fill those needs.