Addiction: Causes and Treatment

There is not one specific factor that causes obesity, but rather a combination of multiple factors such as genetics, environmental, social, and physical factors. As obesity became more prevalent in the United States, the view on obesity by healthcare professionals began to change as well. In the 1940’s, after the great depression and America began to prosper, obesity was considered an addition. This addiction, thought at the time to be derived from an overbearing mother during early childhood, would discourage physical activity and the development of self-reliance (Result Filters 1). This would cause a lifelong pattern of oral gratification as a substitute of other forms of satisfaction, as well as a reaction to stress. In the 1950’s, health professionals connected depression to the cause of obesity and when a person was faced with a challenge, they would eat. Obesity was said to be a gluttonous addiction and programs like “Fattys Anonymous”, “Overeaters Anonymous”, and “Calories Anonymous” were put into place to help people lose weight. While obesity percentages stood still in the 1970’s, there was a push to reduce the shame and guilt from the past programs before with the Fat Power movement. Since then, the view on obesity has not changed, causing people who are overweight to

Obesity within adults is a prevalent problem in the United States, with over 51% of all adults suffering from obesity by the year 2030 (Joyner et al. 217). Obesity, or the state of being excessively overweight, is sometimes a result from what is known as food addiction. Much like an addiction to a substance, to be addicted to food is to constantly crave a certain food item (Joyner et al. 217). Obesity and food addiction tend to coincide with each other. That coexistence is shown primarily in the documentary Super Size Me, in which director Morgan Spurlock focuses on the way fast food and food addiction affect the human body.

In order to better understand addiction as a disease as opposed to a moral dilemma it first must be broken down. First you must look at the way in which the chemicals affect the brain. The first attempt at partaking in any mind altering substance can be looked at as a choice to the individual. However what happens after that first

According to “The Food Addiction,” overeating is the same as a drug addiction because as we increase our consumption rate we are increasing our desire to have more. The more we have the more we want because it is readily avaible for us. On the other, “The Food Addiction,” states that modern foods have an overwhelming affect to our biological feedback networks. This is because it disrupts our hormone regulation, such as hormones that control our appetite and weigh

The addiction I chose to write about this week is a food addiction/compulsive eating. A food addiction is obsessive-compulsive relationship people have with food. Eating food is both vital and important in our everyday lives to give our bodies the nutrients, vitamins and calories that it needs. “Compulsive overeating, also referred to as food addiction, is characterized by an obsessive-compulsive relationship to food” (Karim, 2012, p. 7, para. 2). When people overeat, they engage in episodes of uncontrolled eating and will often find themselves consuming so much food just to feel comfortably full. Compulsive overeaters usually eat even if they are not hungry. People who have a food addiction have excessive thoughts about food that consumes

Some people crave crack cocaine or black tar heroin, they find it hard to put down the needle or pipe, society calls them addicts. What about the people who find themselves craving food, or needing to continually eat past the brink of the stomach’s capacity? Society calls them fat, lazy, gluttonous. People often times don’t think to consider food as an addictive substance, but is it? “Addiction is characterized by inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioral control, and craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviors and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response” (American Society of Addiction Medicine). Food addiction is characterized by an insuppressible

The leading causes of addictions, are pressure from peers, family history, and school stress. Addiction can start at a young age depending on situations with peers, history in a family, and the way you may handle school. People can become addicted to things very easily, and quickly. Addiction can help you depending on what it is, but there can be many negatives to it too. Different; unusual behaviors in negative and positive ways can both come from addictions. Many substances with addiction can take over the human brain quickly and strongly with different levels. Addiction is a chronic and compulsive dependence on a substance such as alcohol, drugs, or nicotine (“Addiction”). In addition, some compulsive behaviors, such as compulsive gambling,

Although anorexia nervosa and bulimia are very dangerous to the health of a person and wreak havoc on the nutritional well-being of the body, there is another serious eating disorder that is often overlooked by society but can be just as unsafe. Sadly, many people have the idea that this particular disorder can be classified as a type of bulimia, but this preconceived idea is incorrect because it is rather a characteristic of the disease than a subcategory of bulimia due to the fact that bulimics force themselves to get rid of their consumptions by exercising or expelling it from their bodies. Binge eating disorder is this very culprit, characterized by excessive and often uncontrollable overeating, which goes well beyond calorie intake recommendations,

Addiction is a dependence on a substance in which the affected individual feels powerless and an unwillingness to stop. When a person thinks of an addiction, the first thing that comes to mind may be drugs, alcohol, nicotine, gambling or even shopping, but a new study shows that one of the most deadly addictions comes from a place of comfort. Food. Millions of people on a normal basis tend to experience the feeling of unquenchable hunger that can only be satisfied by a quick trip through a drive through or devouring an entire bag of chips in as little time as possible. Is obesity really that different from a more common addiction such as alcoholism? To answer this question we must consider the stages of addiction, recognizing symptoms, developing a plan of action in order to conquer this addiction, and how to

It has been many argument considering the food addiction and it effect on an individual health. Food is necessary for the life and our body need the nutrient to produce energy and do everyday activity. Since we are talking about food addiction and health problem in our society; the first thing come to the mind is the obesity problem that is big issue in our society. Some researchers pose the question about obesity and tried to figure out if the obesity is caused by the process of food addiction that is similar to the addiction to drug. The other nutrient that we see I every product or meal is sugar is an essential element for energy. Also sugar has a good test that people like. This sugar make the meals more delicious and make the

Addiction is a medical condition where a person is dependent or enslaved by a habit that may be pleasurable, but it does start to affect their life negatively and starts to cause a lot of trauma. These people may not be aware that their condition has gotten to this point and that it has started to cause problems for themselves and others. Volcanoes, on the other hand, are ruptures in the earth’s surface, which allow ash and lava to be released from its chamber. Volcanoes do not always erupt, and some may lay dormant for a long time, but there is always a possibility that it will explode and hurt quite a few people. Addiction is like a volcano. It can bubble under the surface for a long time, but that does not mean that it will stay dormant

Cornelis, M., Rimm, E., Curhan, G., Kraft, P., Hunter, D., Hu, F. and van Dam, R. (2013). Obesity susceptibility loci and uncontrolled eating, emotional eating and cognitive restraint behaviors in men and women. Obesity, [online] 22(5), pp.E135-E141. Available at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oby.20592/full [Accessed 10 May 2015].

According to Davis (2014) that food should not be thought of as addictive, as food is essential for human survival and with a proper diet with all the vitamins and mineral that the body require humans can live a healthy life (pp. 129). But even so food can be addictive as the process foods have many compounds added to everyday foods that rewards the brain for eating it, therefore, a person will

Millions of people suffer from an addiction of some sort. A person can actually suffer from addictions to all sorts of things. It’s sad to say the first thing that comes to the minds of pretty much everyone when they hear the word addiction, is drugs. Controversy is at an uproar over whether or not food is addictive. As a matter of fact, food is the last thing on a person’s mind when addiction comes about. Though it’s hard to believe yes, there are tons of people who are addicted to food. Really, one could go on to say that food is even more addicting than drugs. Compare the number of overeaters in America to those who are addicted to drugs. Then you’ll

Have you ever dealt with the effects of drug addict? A drug is a person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, which has a psychological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body. The effects of drug use can vary depending on the person. According to “Causes and types of narcotic addiction: A Psychosocial View” in the Psychiatric Quarterly it says, “The causes of drugs stem from the manner of which you were introduced to it whether it be by abnormal curiosity, chance encounters with addicts and narcotic peddlers, or prolonged illness” (Ausubel). The effects of drugs can be have different effects on everyone differently depending if its for pleasure or for relieving pain Most of the effects of drugs occur in the brain, where it increases the level of dopamine at a specific site possibly giving the addict the pleasure they were feigning for (Robbins). As a child I didn’t know much about drugs except for what your parents and teachers at school tell you which is, “Just Say No.”