The Food-Depression Link:
What to Do When You’re “Addicted to Food” Due to Being Depressed
by www.Sedona.com
Many people have a love/hate relationship with food, reaching for it for comfort, entertainment, even companionship, then loathing it for the feelings of guilt it relays.
Indeed, comfort foods -- which are almost always high in bad fats, sugar, salt or a combination of the three -- provide instant gratification and pleasant feelings (albeit often short-lived ones) 100 percent of the time you eat them.
It’s not hard to understand then why so many people suffering from depression become addicted to food…and why so many people who are addicted to food become depressed.
If you are feeling chronically sad, eating a bag of chips or a chocolate bar helps you to feel happy. In the long-run, though, overeating to improve your mood will backfire, causing you to gain weight and put your health at risk.
Meanwhile, people who are addicted to food (and who inevitably find themselves with increased weight and health problems) may fall into a depression because of these circumstances. Both scenarios are quite vicious cycles.
Why We Crave Comfort Foods
Cravings for comfort foods, particularly during stressful times, are not just emotional. There are actual physical reasons why our bodies crave these high-fat, high-sugar foods, according to a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The study, conducted on rats, found that 24 hours after the rats’ chronic stress systems were activated, key stress hormones in the rats (similar to the stress hormone cortisol in humans) prompted them to engage in “pleasure-seeking” behaviors, including eating high-energy foods.
"Our studies suggest that comfort food applies the brakes on a key element of chronic stress," said study co-author Norman Pecoraro, PhD.
Of course, in ancient times, eating high-density foods when your body was stressed could mean the difference between surviving a long winter or dying. But in modern-day times, when most people have access to food 24/7, using food to ward off stress can lead to overeating and health problems.
Meanwhile, when we eat, dopamine, a “feel-good chemical” in the brain, is released, buttressing the positive feelings gained from food. The bottom line is that, for people with depression, food cravings are a double-edged sword, being driven by both physical and emotional factors.
The Emotional Side of Eating
Eating is a very emotional process. From the moment we sniff a loaf of bread or catch a glimpse of a pie fresh from the oven, our feelings are involved. Often, we associate experiences and memories with foods, which can make us want them even more (for instance, having an ice cream sundae when you’re upset, because that’s what your mom gave you as a child).
Those who are chronically sad, meanwhile, may reach for a comfort food much like a drug addict reaches for a drug -- to comfort them temporarily, to relieve the sadness, only to need another “fix” in a short while.
"The brain circuitry that we use to find drugs or food has the same mechanisms involved in looking for anything rewarding," says Roy Wise of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in Maryland, in a Science News article.
In this way, it is quite possible to be “addicted” to food, just as you can be addicted to drugs or alcohol.
How to Overcome a Food Addiction & Gain a Healthy Relationship with Food
To treat most addictions, people are told to completely avoid the substance, but with a food addiction, of course, this is impossible. So how can someone with a food addiction develop a healthy relationship with the object of their addiction?
The key, according to Hale Dwoskin, CEO and director of training of Sedona Training Associates, is not about avoiding the substance, but rather looking into what is motivating you to want it.
“Avoiding the substance without dealing with what is motivating the addiction usually fails in the end. With any addiction the important factor is letting go of whatever feeling or belief is motivating you to do the behavior, even though you know it is not good for you,” Dwoskin says.
The Sedona Method is a tool that will help you to tap into your inherent ability to release whatever emotions, feelings and behaviors may be motivating you to reach for food in times of sadness. This is a simple, scientifically proven system that will dissolve your need to seek comfort in food, and can also help you to let go of the symptoms of depression.
“Once you let go of the inner motivators,” Dwoskin says, “the actions follow with greater ease and effectiveness. Also, you can let go of the feeling that you must give your power away to the addiction.”
When you release these negative feelings and behavior patterns with The Sedona Method, you will feel in control of your behavior, and you will be able to easily make smart choices that will support your health and happiness in the present day and in the years to come. Your mind will also become more open to the multitude of ways you can receive pleasure without food, such as reading a book, taking a walk in nature, or having a long conversation with a good friend.
Sources
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2003 Sep 30;100(20):11696-701
UCSF News Office
Science News Online
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