Potatoes Not Prozac Kathleen Desmaison Analysis

Dr. Gabor Mate, a Hungarian born Canadian physician, who is also a neurologist, psychiatrist, and psychologist, but who specializes in the study and treatment of addiction, reveals revolutionary evidence pertaining to addiction. In Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Dr. Mate worked with patients suffering chronic drug addiction for 12 years. With 20 years of experience as a family practitioner, Dr. Mate is a renowned speaker and teacher throughout North America; sharing his extensive knowledge with diverse audiences including health care professionals and educators (Mate, About Dr. Mate, 2016). The Realm of Hungry Ghosts, Dr. Mate’s most recent best-selling book, illuminates the origins and causes of addiction. As Co-founder of Compassion for Addiction (a non-profit organization), Dr. Gabor Mate encourages a greater understanding; “addiction is the attempt of affected human beings to escape a profound discomfort with themselves and their world” (Mate, Compassion4Addiction, 2015). Drawing on cutting-edge science, Dr. Mate presents the world with a shocking discovery: “The source of addiction is not to be found in genes, but in the early childhood environment.” Therefore, Dr. Mate simply “calls for a more compassionate approach toward the addict.” (Mate, 2016) As cutting-edge science concludes addiction to be a mental health issue, rather than criminal behavior, the American legal system demonstrates a devastating disservice to its own society.

Over a period of 28 days, I decided to give up consuming all Chick-fil-a products and thought the task would be easy for the experiment. However, this trial in my life seemed to be one of the hardest things that I have ever attempted. My thinking revolved around that handling not having this choice of food for a month would not take that much effort and I could get my easy grade by participating in this activity. In a way, the experiment served as a growing factor for those who struggle with addiction and those who don’t understand the strain of addiction. I came to the understanding that struggling is not as easy as some people think it is. In my opinion, another person can never understand the struggle of addiction unless they are involved in some form or fashion.

Did you know that it is statistically proven that addiction is more common than diabetes? 10% of the human population is addicted to either a drug or alcohol. A person can be addicted to several substances, not just drugs and alcohol. By having more options of addiction, this will increase the percentage of addicts. There is so many scenarios to addiction that anyone around could be an addict without realizing it. Several people may believe addiction is something that can easily fixed or they may think it is rare. What people do not know is that addiction is a situation much more serious and goes in depth further than they may expect. It’s a desire that no one wants. It is a condition that is difficult to escape once you begin. Addicts can be so in depth with addiction that they can not get out of it. Addiction is an action that comes with negative yet impactful outcomes.

Historically drug addiction has not been treated like other chronic diseases. Society has viewed the illness as being based on the person using drugs/alcohol and concluded that stopping the behavior would end the problem. The reality is that other people who have chronic disorders often require sustained and repeated treatment episodes. Amelia Arria and A. Thomas McLellan (2012) pointed out, “First, viewing addiction as a “bad habit’ or a “sin” has led us to unnecessarily attach antisocial attributes to both the addiction process itself and to those who become addicted. Second, the nature of our traditional treatments for this “condition”-generally short term, educational, and segregated from the rest of medical care–do not comport with the scientific findings showing

I pursued this newfound passion by majoring in Nutrition and Food Sciences at Louisiana State University (LSU). During freshman year, I began working with Dr. Catherine Champagne at one of the world’s leading nutritional research centers, Pennington Biomedical Research Center. Under Dr. Champagne’s direction, I gained experience in components of nutritional counseling, in-depth dietary research and interpreting

From time to time we all have periods of sadness, unhappy thoughts. Among the United States population, around eight to ten percent suffer from a form of depression as unipolar depression. Depressive and bipolar disorders show to be a principal cause of disability, without cure a person can have a tough experience with relationships, work, and social activities. Substance abuse disorders are becoming an rampant. The need for instant indulgence has become more and more widespread in the world. The DSM-5 shows the symptoms checklist for diagnosis of substance abuse disorder (see table 1.3 in appendix a), and according to Comer, (2014) “the substances people misuse fall into several categories: depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, and cannabis”

Ramifications of obesity have been long recognized by health care professions, but there is no clinically recognized definition of food addiction. Mental health researchers at Yale University applied traditional criteria for substance abuse to eating and obesity and found striking similarities (Liebman, 2012). There remains considerable debate about classifying nonsubstance addictions, with some mental health professionals suggesting that these are behavioral disorders rather than disorders with neurobiological causes.

I learned about how addictions are stimulated in the brain by dopamine and salience. This article has opened my eyes a little about some of my family that are going through addictions themselves. I feel that it is really important to know...even a little, about addictions because we’re surrounded by it every day, without even acknowledging it. It wasn’t until a few days ago, that I realized that two of my family members have an addiction themselves, which is why they are struggling with obesity. Not only have I noticed addictions at home but at school as well, students cannot seem to go 20 minutes fully engaged in an assignment, without their smartphones. I find that being in this class has really opened my eyes, and in a way has given me the chance to realize that I should be more careful about the decisions I could make because of what they could lead

Becker and Murphy theory on addiction provides insight on the pleasure that is harmful to one's health that even rational people with an understanding of the effects of the addiction still make a choose to partake. Public awareness and education of obesity are imperative for the American people. Reducing obesity, improving nutrition, and increasing activity can help decrease healthcare cost, and reverse a broad range of diseases. By improving one's lifestyle, causes them to feel better, enhance their work productivity, and reduces their mortality rate (Folland, Goodman, & Stano 2013).

The consumption of sweetened beverages, refined foods, and pastries has been shown to be associated with an increased risk of depression in longitudinal studies. However, any influence that refined carbohydrates has on mood could be commensurate with their proportion in the overall diet; studies are therefore needed that measure overall intakes of carbohydrate and sugar, glycemic index (GI), and glycemic load.

Now if review one major aspect that is being under discussion by the people is the “sugar controversy “declaring sugar as an addiction like any other drug heroine, morphine or codeine. http://jn.nutrition.org/content/139/3/623.

Therefore, each person may feed their bodies with a plan of sound nutrition that will allow freedom from the insanity of this disease. Keep each addict honest, opened minded, and the willingness to share their experience, strength, and hope. With this we can recover from this disease, “ONE DAY AT A TIME” (Food addicts anonymous, n.d.). Once he finished, the facilitator elaborated on the two topics relating to her battle with food addiction and health problems. She then expounded on what it takes for food addicts to refrain from regression (abstinence) of certain foods, such as sugar, flour, and wheat. Following came the reading of the group’s primary purpose, cross talk and the twelve steps and traditions.

Three nutritional musts for the healing brain of a teen recovering from substance abuse. Substance abuse is a serious issue that is affecting thousands of people around the world, including many teenagers. Unfortunately, substance abuse is a disease that damages the brain. When a person actually takes time to learn about what abusing drugs or alcohol can do to the brain, they will see that the results are very scary. It can destroy the brain’s nerve cells and disrupt neural circuitry. This is going to affect a person’s behavior, their mood, their memory, their decision-making abilities and their cognitive functioning. This is extremely serious. Parents are especially concerned about what substance abuse is doing to their teenager’s brains and

When I began this class I had a very specific experience and understanding of addictions. One of the major influencers in my view of addictions has been my mother. This is something I never fully processed until I began really learning about addictions and what they do to people. I had impressions of addiction which were completely off base, and I had never taken the time to filter my prejudices through the reality of addictive disorders. Nevertheless, this project and this class has had a wonderful effect on my perception of those struggling with addictions.

Finding a meeting to fit my schedule was challenging. Most of the meetings were too late and the times were difficult for me to attend. I decided to attend the overeater anonymous; this was the only meeting that was open and accommodating to fit my schedule. My motivation to attend this meeting was to have an understanding of what other people are facing when they are fighting an addictive behavior or habit. When I listened to people talking about their issues and their experiences of t overeating; or how they maintain their diet or prevent the problem from re-occurring. I will have a willingness to change my own diet.