By: Bunny Young, MA, QMHP

​This week is National Eating Disorder Awareness week . . .

. . . so we looked at what questions were out there about food, eating, diets, and relationships with meals and discovered that this question was very popular and there are a lot of different opinions on the subject. Most research shows that sugar can be processed in the brain and body with severe spikes and then crashes. This can cause cravings for more and more sugar as an individual wants to have those spikes again. You have heard someone say that they were tired and needed to get a piece of candy to stay awake or if a child eats ice cream that they are bouncing off the wall. This is due to the sugar in our foods. That answers one part of the addiction question. ​Now let’s look at another.

Behaviors and situations that are stressful in life can have a severe impact on our well being and state of mind. If you are stressed and you reach for a piece of candy or a large pizza, you are creating a pattern of coping that your mind and body will remember. Now when you feel stress, your body responds with a craving for pizza. Your body does not know that the pizza did not make you feel better, your body only remembers a stressful situation was followed by pizza last time. The pattern then becomes the norm for your life. You body is not actually addicted to pizza, it is just responding to the pattern created by the situation.

Based on these two limited situations one of the best ways to maintain a healthy relationship with food is to strive for a balanced and proportional diet.

Ask yourself these questions while you eat:

• Am I bored?
• Am I stressed?
• Am I full?
• Am I distracted?
• Am I chewing my food?

​Avoid watching TV or being on your phone while eating as this can lead to poor eating habits and relationships with food. If you are still struggling or have any questions please reach out to us at adina@adinasilvestri.com and we will be happy to support you. For more resources and useful tips, please visit the National Eating Disorder Association website then sign up for our weekly group therapy eating disorder brown bag lunch!