Food Addiction Is A Real Addiction

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

In “Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food” by Michael Moss is about the rising numbers of obesity in both adults and children throughout the United States. On the Evening of April 8, 1999, some of the biggest food industries CEO’s ad company presidents come together for a rare, private meeting. Discussing the emerging obesity epidemic and how they should deal with it. Big time companies food is lacking the nutrients that a person needs and is more concentrated on how to make it more desired. Keeping the customers coming for more. While the industries are gaining a profit, the customers are gaining a big belly.

“During an average binge, you may consume from 3,000 to 5,000 calories in one short hour. After it ends, panic sets in and you turn to drastic measures to “undo” the binge, such as taking ex-lax, inducing vomiting, or going for a ten-mile run. And all the while, you feel increasingly out of control” (Smith, Melinda. Bulimia). The final eating disorder discussed in this paper is binge eating. Binge eating disorder is known as overeating or a period of uncontrollable eating. Binge eating is becoming more and more common here in america because of the large quantities of food sold daily. Although, binge eaters do not purge after eating, they still feel shame or guilt after eating like a bulimic (Anorexia, Nervosa).

I would then go on to the different reasons why people overeat and ask the client which one(s) they identify with and why, as the majority of people will be able to identify with at least one of them. One such reason is eating to lessen unpleasant experiences. This is something we learn from an early age, such as getting something sweet from a parent when we are in pain. In later life we may be taken for meals out to cheer us up or be brought 'comfort' food such as chocolate and ice-cream after a break up, for example (Chrysalis, Module Six). Eating to get attention and gain authority is another reason why people may overeat. Larger people may feel like they are more important and command attention, though not always positively. They may be for example, making a point of telling people how much they are eating at a party, gaining negative attention in replacement of the harder to achieve positive attention. People may also overeat for reward and entertainment, such as receiving a treat food for completing chores as a child, or giving and receiving chocolates and wine on special occasions later in life. However, treats are now common place in households and not necessarily used for special occasions. People can also use food for fear, overeating on unhealthy foods to help them deal with their fear.

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 Michael Moss’ article, “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Food,” he discussed multiple methods food industries used to attract consumers to buy more of their products. He mentioned how multiple CEO’s of food companies discussed the health epidemic. He revealed, “Today, one in three adults is considered clinically obese, along with one in five kids, and 24 million Americans are afflicted by type 2 diabetes, often caused by poor diet”(476-477). Basically, Moss is stating that millions of Americans are at risk of or have type 2 diabetes because of the unhealthy choices in their diet. Similarly, in David Zinczenko’s article, “Don’t Blame the Eater,” Zinczenko blames food industries for the health epidemic. He stated, “But where, exactly, are

One of the biggest medical issues in America today is childhood obesity. A child is considered obese if that child is above the normal weight for their age and height. Childhood obesity is a “national epidemic” problem in America that needs major attention. In the article,”The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food,” by Michael Moss he acknowledges that “Among children, the rates had more than doubled since 1980, and the number of kids considered obese had shot past 12 million”(473). Moss’s point is that the rates of childhood obesity has increased tremendously over the past years. And the number of children that are overweight are at risk of becoming obese keeps growing. In addition, they are at greater risk for serious medical

Studies have shown that there is evidence of high rates of comorbidity between binge-eating and other psychiatric and physical health

Obesity has been framed as a topic of personal responsibly for a long time. For many, the fundamental notion has always been that if you stop eating junk food and eat “healthy”, you will maintain a healthy weight. According to the U.S. Centers of Disease Control’s 2007-2008 Health and Nutrition Examination survey, it was found that 73.7% of all Americans 20 years old or older were overweight, obese, or extremely obese. That is a lot of fat people and it is hard to believe that fast food alone is responsible for 70% of adult Americans being overweight.

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

We like everything in an instant. Individuals like fast cars, fast communication, and most of all we love fast food. Having things in life come in an instant seems great but there is a price to pay. Therefore, fast food may be convenient but it is costly. Although, fast food may save you time now, it will cost you years of your life later. Most foods that are quick and convenient are full of refined sugars, carbohydrates and other processed food. Sadly, these attributes of convenient food causes many of us to overeat. Dr. Lustig referred to individuals who eat a lot as “gourmands.” Sadly, there are a number of things that happen when we consume sugars, carbohydrate and fats. First, due to overeating an individual may have higher levels of leptin. Leptin is a protein produced by fatty tissue and believed to regulate fat storage in the body. According to Stephan Guyenet, when we become leptin resistance when our brain does not know when we are full therefore we overeat. Leptin resistance comes from a high consumption of sugar. Dr. Lustig suggest that sugar in the presence of insulin creates fat. I believe that obesity is direct effect of another underlying issue. Correspondingly, we all know the effects sugar has on our bodies, but yet we continue to consume it in high quantities. In my opinion, sugar is a drug and many people have an addiction to it. Sugars sends the same signals and high levels of dopamine to brain just as drugs. For example, I have an uncle who weighs about 900 pounds. He was not always this big, so what happened? As a child, he ate a lot of sugary foods and food that contains a lot of fat. Not only did my uncle eat unhealthy, but he was not very active. Therefore, there was a combination of factors that contributed to his massive weight gain. Obviously, his body started to become leptin resistant at some point. If you become leptin resistance and have an addiction to sugar then you

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

History suggests that overeating is a choice, an addition similar to smoking cigarettes caused by lack of will power, boredom or simple gluttony. With new research, society is beginning to learn there is more behind obesity than just a choice or addition. For instance, a

Second, overeating is a complicated behavior directly related to the conduct of the individual and its performance with society. This puzzling disease appears just if a

If one continually eats unhealthy foods, they can quickly become overweight. Moreover, this has become such a recurring problem in America that according to the National Institutes of Health, compulsive eating has led to obesity for approximately 35.7% of Americans. This number represents over one-third of the entire U.S population and will continue to grow unless it is addressed. In addition, it is critical that Americans learn to moderate their junk food intake to prevent the contraction of serious health issues. Sweenie states that, “Food high in salt, sugar, fat or calories and low nutrient content...provide suboptimal nutrition with excessive fat, sugar, or sodium per kcal. Such poor diets can slow growth, promote obesity; sow the seeds of diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cardiac problems, and osteoporosis.” These are exceptionally serious diseases that can often result in a severely hindered lifestyle or even death. In order to avoid these exceptionally undesirable outcomes, one must always remain aware of their daily junk food consumption. In Kirkey’s article, Paul Kenny, an associate professor at the Scripps Research Institute in Florida, states that, "It's incumbent upon people to make sure that they're more respectful and aware of what they're eating. Just be aware that there are dangers and risks associated. Enjoy (high-fat) food, but make sure it's occasionally and