Compulsive Overeating and Food Addiction

Below is a wonderful blog post by my good friend and a brilliant writer Ms. Amy Berger. She has a Master’s degree in Nutrition and has written the book “The Alzheimer’s Solution”. She is one of my best resources for all things nutrition. She may be speaking here in Ottawa in the fall of 2020 depending on the current issue we are experiencing with the coronavirus.She is honest! Honest and insightful into the difficulties she (and I, and many other people) has around food. I loved this post. It speaks to me, and I think speaks to many of you also. Please go on her site (Tuit Nutrition) and read all of it. If you want, she will be starting a group called the “NEST” that will help people address many issues around food.Enjoy Ms. Amy Berger!“I have a confession to make, everyone.I have a problem with food.I am a compulsive overeater and a food addict.No, I don’t get into the carbs anymore. My high-carb days are over and done with and have been for a long time. It’s the low-carb foods I overconsume. The foods people think “no one” binges on. You wanna bet they don’t?I’ve been living with this for a while now, and I’m ready to do something about it. I’ve been afraid. I’ve been ashamed. I’ve lived in a shroud of self-loathing. It’s a dark, scary, and very, very lonely place to be.When I’m feeling overwhelmed or scared about things in life in general, I know of no more comforting sentence that can be strung together with four words than: you are not alone.And as awful as dealing with this food “stuff” is, I know I’m not alone. Almost no one is talking about it, but that doesn’t mean many of us aren’t living with it. Living in shame. Living in silence.Let’s break that silence right now, together. If I thought I was the only one fighting these demons, I wouldn’t have written this post or be creating what I’m about to tell you about. I know I’m not the only one. This conversation is long overdue. We don’t need to hide anymore. They say “sunlight is the best disinfectant,” and I agree. Current coronavirus issues aside, when dealing with an emotional issue, rather than an infectious one, I do think that getting things into the open can be very therapeutic. It might even be impossible to move forward without doing that. So let’s do it. Now.With all that in mind:Keto is wonderful for regulating appetite. There’s no doubt that once you’re off the blood sugar and insulin rollercoasters, hunger becomes very manageable. Feeling “hangry” (hungry + angry) is a distant memory from your former high-carb life, and now, when hunger strikes, it comes on gently and gradually, and you have no problem waiting an hour or two if you need to before having a meal or snack. (See here for a blog post I wrote about the regulation of hunger and appetite on keto.) And that’s great. Fabulous! If, that is, you only eat when you’re actually hungry. If you are someone who (like me) eats for approximately a bajillion reasons other than true, physiological hunger, then the effect keto has on normalizing hunger and appetite is nice, and it has likely helped you somewhat, but it sure hasn’t completely removed your urge to overeat, to eat foods that don’t suit you, or to eat when you know darn well you’re not hungry and have no reason to be.I am a compulsive overeater and a food addict.No, I don’t get into the carbs anymore. My high-carb days are over and done with and have been for a long time. It’s the low-carb foods I overconsume. The foods people think “no one” binges on. You wanna bet they don’t?I’ve been living with this for a while now, and I’m ready to do something about it. I’ve been afraid. I’ve been ashamed. I’ve lived in a shroud of self-loathing. It’s a dark, scary, and very, very lonely place to be.When I’m feeling overwhelmed or scared about things in life in general, I know of no more comforting sentence that can be strung together with four words than: you are not alone.And as awful as dealing with this food “stuff” is, I know I’m not alone. Almost no one is talking about it, but that doesn’t mean many of us aren’t living with it. Living in shame. Living in silence.”Dealing with the emotions/habits around food are not easy, it’s a lifelong journey. Never ever give up. You can do it. As you can see from the above blog, even the experts, with all their scientific knowledge struggle like you and I.Dr. Doug