Read Why Diets Fail (Because You're Addicted to Sugar) Online
Authors: Nicole M. Avena
When it comes to fast-food restaurants, it’s a bit more difficult. While you can eat on the run when needed, it’s not a good idea to rely on this, as you tend to have fewer options and may be forced to eat something that you’re trying to avoid. Even though places like McDonald’s and Burger King have introduced salads to their menus that fit well into this diet, most of their lineup, even their breakfast lineup, is verboten. Also, remember that salad dressings often contain a lot of sugar, so be sure to check the label.
TIP 3: RESIST “FOOD PUSHERS”
We’ve all come face-to-face with food pushers at one time or another: your buddy asks you to get nachos and beer with him during halftime at a football game, your grandma shoves yet another one of her “world-famous” pastries at you after dinner, or your friend repeatedly offers you a piece of birthday cake. Despite our best efforts to maintain a balanced diet, these food pushers, with their encouraging words and persistence that “oh, you just have to try it” or “only one won’t hurt” can lead you to unwise eating or drinking. So why do we often succumb to these pressures, and how can we stay on track in challenging social situations?
Let’s take a closer look at a common situation that makes avoiding certain foods difficult: Your close friends have invited you to a barbeque at their house. When you arrive, there is a table full of appetizers—tortilla chips and salsa, pretzels, veggies and ranch dip.
The cooler beside it is full of various kinds of beer, soft drinks, and water. At the next table, there are platters full of hamburgers, hot dogs, and grilled chicken. Next to the platter is an array of condiments and accompaniments—ketchup, mayonnaise, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and onions. At the other end of the patio is the dessert table: cookies and fixings for ice-cream sundaes.
Yes, there are a lot of sugar-rich and unhealthy foods. No, you don’t want to leave the party to avoid them. You are confident about applying what you know about food, and you approach the buffet. As you put some veggies on your plate, the hosts greet you and ask why you’re not having some ranch dip with them. If you were at home, deviating from your healthy lifestyle wouldn’t cross your mind. But there’s something about being at a party and your friends’ encouragement that leads you to waiver. Let’s look at why.
According to the goal conflict model of eating, when dieters encounter a tasty food, they are faced with two conflicting goals: (1) enjoy the pleasure of eating or (2) weight control.
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This model shows how the goal of eating can win over the goal of weight control. Why? Because we are surrounded by tasty foods, our mental representation of the weight control goal is inhibited.
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Plus, the results of the weight control goal are long-term and may not be obvious at the moment, whereas the palatable food is right in front of us, so the result of the pleasurable eating goal will be immediate, however temporary. Because of these factors, we are more likely to focus on the goal of eating enjoyment. Tying this back to the party scenario, you’re surrounded by foods and drinks you would not normally have at home, and your brain focuses on the pleasure of consuming them instead of your weight goals.
If we shift our focus to the social level, food environments and social relationships affect food choice.
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Your food environment consists of the kinds of foods and ways of obtaining them that are
available to you: grocery stores, fast-food chains, delis, ice-cream shops, convenience stores, and so on. Therefore, the foods made available to you will influence your choice of what to consume. In addition, scientists suggest that how well you know the individuals with whom you’re eating can affect food intake. This means that the more comfortable you are around a person, the more relaxed you are, which facilitates consumption.
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Connecting this to the party situation suggests that your friendship with the hosts of the party makes you more relaxed and can lead you to loosen the restraint you planned on exercising.
Now that we have a better understanding of why certain people or situations can result in unwanted consumption of certain foods and drinks, let’s think about some phrases you can use to help avoid the traps set by some situations and food pushers. To convey the firmness of your decision, it will be useful to use an assertive voice.
“You have to try some; I made it just for you”
“No thanks, I’m really not hungry.”
“Since when are you picky about what you eat?”
“I’ve decided to focus on taking care of myself.”
“Here, I got you another drink.”
“No thanks, I have to drive tonight.”
“A little piece won’t hurt.”
“My doctor says I shouldn’t have any foods like that, so I’m going to follow what she recommended.”
“You should have some. The hosts will be offended if you don’t.”
“I’ll explain my decision to them. I know they will want me to be around for celebrations in the future, so it’s best if I watch out for my own health now.”
Another option is to simply tell people that you’ve decided to stop eating sugar. But anticipate some mixed reactions. Some people may be really interested and have a lot of questions about why you’re doing it, what it is like, and how you do it. This can be your opportunity to teach people about what you have learned about addiction to food, hidden sugars, and ways to reduce or replace sugar in your diet.
However, some people may be more skeptical at first. Some may say things like “Well, if you aren’t eating sugars, what the heck are you eating?” This is likely because when they reflect on their own diet, they see that it is loaded with sugars and carbohydrates, so cutting them out would not leave much else. Another typical reaction might be “I could never do that.” Again, this can be an opportunity for you to pay it forward and to share what you have learned about cutting sugars from your diet and leading a happier, healthier lifestyle. You may turn a skeptic into a believer!
Another negative reaction that you may face is something like “That is dumb … you should just eat in moderation.” People who respond in this way are probably not aware of the science behind sugar addiction and how moderation and self-control can be impossible if you’re addicted to food. You can either (1) take this as an opportunity to tell them about the addictive nature of certain foods and how they can affect your brain and behavior or (2) shrug it off and change the topic.
Remember, you aren’t obligated to explain yourself or your actions to anyone. It is your choice.
It’s your body. You control what you consume. You are the only person who can decide which foods and drinks you will have. You know how to protect yourself against food pushers.
TIP 4: GET TO THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM
Much of this book has focused on the nuts and bolts of addiction and how to conquer sugar addiction specifically, but a major point remains to be addressed that may be beneficial when trying to maintain a life that is free of sugar addiction. Just like food cravings may serve a certain function when we are stressed or upset, an addiction may serve a certain function for you as well, and it can be helpful to identify why this addiction began. Although you may be able to conquer your sugar or food addiction without a clear understanding of why the addiction developed, this understanding may be helpful going forward so that you know what signs to look for before falling back into a similar pattern.
There are multiple reasons that this addiction may have initially developed, including emotional, social, and even biochemical factors. Identifying when the addictive behaviors or even just overeating of sugary foods and drinks first began might provide clues as to what circumstances (internal or external) may have contributed to them. Again, the value of this is to be aware of when in particular you may be vulnerable to using these behaviors in the future so that you can be proactive.
Research reviewing narratives given by women addicted to alcohol or drugs found that drug use seemed to begin in an attempt to self-nurture.
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The researchers point out, however, what most of us can surmise; that over the long run, this drug use resulted in negative consequences in various areas of their lives (work, family, and so on). This same process may take place with other types of addiction as well; maybe you used sugary foods or drinks to alleviate emotions that were difficult to sit with, but over time, has this behavior also caused problems in other aspects of your life? It may be helpful to contrast the reason(s) you started engaging in addictive behaviors regarding sugary foods and drinks with the effects these
behaviors have caused over time. In fact, this group of researchers found that realizing that the costs were greater than the benefits of using alcohol or drugs was one of the key initial steps to the journey of recovery.
You may find that seeing a counselor or therapist is helpful when trying to understand why certain behaviors began and to identify healthy ways that these types of situations can be handled going forward. For instance, if you began overeating sugary foods as an escape from your emotions, a therapist may be able to help you identify and manage those emotions in a way that doesn’t have you running to the pantry. In fact, this may be precisely why you turned to food in the first place—to avoid the difficulty of experiencing certain emotions, but consider again the cost-benefit analysis discussed above. In the moment, engaging in addictive behaviors may provide temporary relief, but it’s just that—temporary—and the long-term consequences may be worse.
It is important to note, however, that an addiction to food may not necessarily be the result of an emotional reaction to something else in our life. Remember, our modern-day food environment is filled with things that can contribute to and perpetuate an addiction to food. In addition to constant cues and reminders of our favorite foods, we also tend to eat certain foods out of convenience. Also, as mentioned earlier, it is often less expensive to eat junk foods. Additionally, many of us may not have been taught good nutrition or eating habits. If you were raised drinking sugar-sweetened sodas and eating chips, these behaviors may seem normal and natural, and you may have a long history of overeating sugars without intention. Maybe you never gave much thought to the amount of sugar contained in many common foods. Maybe you just hate to cook! Whatever the reasons, it may be helpful to identify the factors that may have contributed to a pattern of overeating so that you are aware of what might influence you to overeat later on.
TIP 5: EAT BECAUSE YOU’RE HUNGRY, NOT BECAUSE YOU’RE HAPPY
Continuing with this theme, research shows that people’s emotions affect what, and when, they eat. We’ve offered a lot of information about why and what people eat for pleasure, but people also eat for other non-hunger-related reasons, such as stress
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and even joy.
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This probably doesn’t come as a surprise, as many of us have, at one point or another, overeaten as a result of one or more of these feelings. But what can you do to control stress and other emotions?
Sleep! You might be overlooking the important impact of sleep on body weight. Research shows that people who get less sleep tend to weigh more.
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Scientists have found that when people sleep less, motivation-related areas of the brain are highly activated at the sight of food,
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perhaps indicating that people who get less sleep may be more inclined to overeat. Biologically, this makes sense too, as there are links between lack of sleep and dysfunction of satiety signals.
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With high-stress, fast-paced lifestyles, people may sacrifice sleep in an attempt to make more time for work or spending time with others—things that add to people’s quality of life and make them happy. However, forgoing sleep can have a negative effect on body weight, so while you may be happy to have time for some things that give you joy, you may be sacrificing your health.
What about when you are awake? What can you do to take command and control of your emotions while you’re up and about throughout your day? A growing body of literature supports the benefits of mindfulness of food choice.
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Mindfulness involves taking the time to consider factors such as why you are eating, how you are feeling, and what you are accomplishing for yourself by consuming a given food; based on this thought process, a person makes a thoughtful decision about whether or not to eat, what to eat, or how much to eat. For some people, yoga and meditation are
methods of incorporating this type of thinking into their lives. However, other people may prefer different forms of self-reflection. These may include writing or typing your thoughts and emotions in a journal, on a notepad, or on a computerized document, stating your thoughts and feelings aloud before acting, or keeping a notepad on your refrigerator or pantry so that you can note how you’re feeling before eating.
TIP 6: SET SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM GOALS
Before you begin a diet plan, or any new plan at all, you need goals. However, some people set goals that require drastic change in a short amount of time, or that don’t take into account their lifestyle and current set of circumstances. This section will outline how to set practical and realistic goals over time.