Eating is perhaps the biggest pleasure in the world for a man. Almost all work that is done is done so that a man can put food on the table for him and his family. From the past all civilizations worked because they wanted food to sustain themselves. They fought with each other so that they can get more fertile lands to grow more food. Food is the most basic necessity of life. Hence we can see that the disorders of eating especially obesity are due to the love for food. The strongest longings in this world are for food. Food tends for a person to do things that otherwise he could never do. But over indulgence is food will hamper a healthy way of living. Today more and more people are becoming health conscious. But even so with so much modern fast food available they cannot stop themselves form indulging in the food that is available. It is noted as such that obesity is cause more defiantly by these physiological drives towards food rather than any other factors.
Eating emotionally can hamper many things for you including your health. Also it is the biggest threat to your health program. To eat emotionally is to give in to the temptations. Greed and gluttony are two of the deadliest sins of mankind. But this is mostly involuntary. Most people consciously or unconsciously turn to food for comfort n their troubled times. This is very human as it is very hard to stay sad on a full and satisfied stomach. To eat contently is comfort that can be provided by nothing else in this world. But this is dangerous at the same time. To eat emotionally or to eat to cool down the negative emotions can lead to unnecessary weight gain. This is because emotional eating always leads to consuming more food than you normally would eat.
Eating emotionally can be cured. In fact if you have a weight problem that is mostly due to eating emotionally then you can rectify it with proper self control and discipline. With this you can come back on track with you weight loss plans or your healthy diet that you were originally on before. It is well noted that while being emotional people tend to eat sweet or salty food that contain high calorie. This leads to increase in body weight especially if eaten in regular patterns. This can be controlled through control over mind and suppressing the urges towards food.
Many food items are known to have addictive properties. The most common example of this would be chocolate. While consuming chocolate, the body releases a self satisfying hormone that is much desired by many. This feeling makes people want to consume more and more chocolate. Such rewards of mood are associated with various kinds of food items. These simple pleasures drive off negative emotions from a person which lets them eat more and more of that specific item. Also many people use food as a form of distraction from their worries and tensions. It calms a person down and makes them ready for an upcoming event. But this comfort is only temporary. While eating, all the thoughts those are present focus only on the joy that is brought to you by eating. As you finish eating all your tensions and doubts return. To continue the state of comfort people continue to eat which leads to unhealthy eating especially if the person is not satisfied. Also after consuming so much food the person now carries the added guilt of over eating among his other tensions.
There are various methods that one can employ to control their eating habits especially if they are mostly eating due to emotional needs all the time. The first of the steps is to realize what triggers the hunger in them and working towards resolving that trigger. To control the craving for food is half the work done towards solving any eating disorders. The person should first recognize weather the hunger that he is feeling is a need of the body or a need of the mind. To be able to differentiate between the two is very important. If the person feels hungry just after lunch or just by seeing a delicious food item then this is probably a drive of the mind and not the body. An easy way to get rid of this is to wait for a few minutes for the mind to get distracted and the cravings to pass away. Noting down these triggers also helps to check them. If you know what drives you towards eating, what emotionally triggers you, then you can look to avoid those situations. This actually does miracles in solving many over eating problems. The negative eating patterns can be resolved only if they are successfully identified.
To look for comfort in food is not always the right answer. It is true that food is the best comforter but if your problem is over eating then you should look else where for comfort. Walking is a good idea. Also movies and TV can effectively distract you. Reading a book or listening to music are well known distractions. Also you can go meet people and talk to your friends. This will help you to get away from you food thoughts. You can plan various other enjoyable events for yourself that will keep your mind off food.
Having chips and fries around can be very tempting. Try and keep all high calorie food outside the house. Do not shop based on you mood. This will only result in you buying more comfort foods than healthy food. If you really feel like taking a snack, take food that is low fat and low in calorie such as fresh fruits or unbuttered popcorn. The most important way to stop emotional eating and virtually all eating problems is to have a balanced and satisfying diet. To be content will immediately stop all your cravings for food and keep you healthy.
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Stop eating emotionally
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