Can someone be addicted to the very thing everyone needs for
survival? What is it about food that makes it so enjoyable? Within the 20 years
between 1980 and 200 the obesity rates doubled among adults. Similarly the
overweight rate for both children and adolescents has doubled if not tripled.
What is causing the soar in obesity rates? Could it be that the population has
simply lost control over themselves or is it simply what we’ve been eating and
what’s in it?
This is new to the world of addiction but is certainly
earning its name with the rate of obesity and overweight people increasing
quickly. What do people get out of eating constantly? As in what kind of
psychological rewards would some get out of a habit that is needed for living?
Since we need oxygen for survival and we’re constantly breathing it does that
mean that everyone is addicted to oxygen as well?
Finally, should this be considered an addiction? It is still
being debated in the medical realm and it has not technically been decided. Why
is it that people know that what they’re eating and the outrageous amounts they
are consuming are not healthy for them? What is it that is keeping them from
making this connection and stopping?
The connection cannot be made by certain people due to a limited amount of self control. People do have control whether or not they should eat but some have less will power than others which is why they are unable to stop. It's not that they are not making the connection between eating and obesity, it's the fact that people just can't stop. Society today has so many different ways of persuading people to eat their food whether it be appearance, price, taste, etc. So it's not that people cannot make the connection, it's the fact that they can't help it because of an influence brought on to them by someone or something else.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if you can be addicted to food. I believe that you can have strong cravings for one type of food, but I don't think it can get to the point of addiction. People today don't have the will power to stop or say no when they know the repercussions of eating a specific type of food. Company's today have become quite proficient in persuading people to eat their food or at their restaurant. If the individual decides to say no, they won't be thinking about it all day like a drug addict. Their decision not to go their and eat won't interfere with their daily life, like it would if a drug addict didn't get their fix.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with Katie's idea that people can have strog cravings for food without it bein an addiction. I think for many people food becomes a hsbit done out of boredom, stress, or another emotional state, but they don't develop the psychological dependency on it like drugs. There isn't an issue with physical addiction, but a serious issue with will powerand personal choice. Many people just don't understand how unhealthy their eating habits are, leading to increased obesity and other related issues.
ReplyDeleteI found it very interesting that food packaging plants are putting sugar into foods that we don't normally think about having a lot of sugar in them, like pasta sauce. Knowing this makes me think that we may not necessarily be addicted to food but that we are being tricked into eating more sugar than we think we are. Which is in turn leading our bodies to crave more and more sugar forming what is like an addiction. I will be interested to see how much more research has been done on this topic in the last six years.
ReplyDeleteI feel like the idea of being addicted to food is not very probable. Food is an essential nutrient to living, without it we die. Simple as that. Now it is safe to say that some people may eat more than they should, but I do not think it would be logical to imply the increase in food take to addiction. Also, some people may use food to "eat away" their feelings, when a tragic event happens in someone's life such as losing a loved one, eating is one way to help cope because when you eat something you like, you feel good.
ReplyDeleteI don't feel like you can be addicted to food. I think that our society today has evolved so that it's acceptable to over eat and this could be perceived as being addicted. As with many other questionable addictions, people can like food and get enjoyment from eating it, especially if it is food they like. However, I don't think that just because people enjoy eating good food, because everyone does, that they are addicted. I think that some people have lower self control which would cause them to over eat and be called addicted.
ReplyDeleteI think rather than an addiction this is more of a self control issue that one would like to assign blame to an addiction. By calling it an addiction we are able to feel helpless and blameless. I often experience a fluctuation with overeating then under eating and it is merely an inability to control myself. It is also easy to deny it as a control issue bu saying it is the very thing we need to survive because then it is more biological then behavioral.
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ReplyDeleteI don't think that food itself is an addiction, but I do think that the amount of sugar in foods can result in cravings. People tend to eat when they are upset and stressed, and sometimes the sugar makes them feel better. The more they eat, the better they feel. However, after a while they have to eat more to get the same feeling. So while it is a matter of self control in a way, I think the fact that there is so much sugar in what society eats today, it makes it more than a normal craving.
ReplyDeleteI don't think men will be addicted to food as food is what keep us alive. Though sometimes people may have food disorder or anorexia, but it doesn't mean people who like food would have food addiction. Some people may be eat way too much than they need. But addiction should be more than 'too much'.
ReplyDeleteI firmly believe that an addiction to food is one of the more credible addictions. An addiction can be defined as a state or condition of being enslaved to a particular stimulus. The food, in this case, acts as the stimulus. A lack thereof can cause illness such as upset stomach and diarrhea to name a few. The growing food addictions globally are a direct result of advertisement. In the past thirty years, advancements in technology have allowed for better commercials that advertise unhealthy food. A constant eating habit, like any other addiction, requires an individual to eat more to meet his/her needs. As a result, people become more dependent on various types of food, most of them unhealthy.
ReplyDeleteYes and addiction to food is plausible; however, it just goes back to the idea that the brain seeks pleasure. In the article the first example dealt with chocolate and how the woman needed it and could not get through the day without it. Yes she did like chocolate, but her brain like the chemicals released when eating it. This addiction too had a side effect like many other addictions, the woman grew to weigh 250 pounds. This is only one example, but there are many cases of this. Our bodies get so used to our intake that even the slightest change can cause an upset, which can be analyzed as withdrawal or an overdose. All these things can point in the direction of proving the possibility of a food addiction.
ReplyDeleteI think that validating an addiction to food is very difficult. Its hard to see how something that is essential to human life can suddenly be said to be the source of addiction. I think that the concept of food addiction has come about as more of an answer to the huge increase obesity rates over the past decades, then it is the classification of a real disorder. I strongly agree with what Andrea said about it being more of a control issue in which they use the term addiction to shuffle the responsibility off the person. Unlike years ago, people are surrounded by food at all times, with cheap fast food restaurants on every street corner. People have to have the discipline and self control to eat healthy and at normal rate.
ReplyDeleteI think the rising rates in obesity cannot simply be categorized as more people becoming addicted to food. Many factors contribute to this such as the increasing popularity of fast food chains and the lower quality that those fast food chains put into their food. Having said that I do think people can become addicted to food, it works the same as any other item that gives the brain pleasure. Many of these blog posts are becoming the same, I think we are learning that just about anything can become an addictive activity for someone. The trick is to be aware of something that is beginning to develop into a habit and not to let it affect your everyday lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that someone that has become over weight can be considered to be addicted to food. People eat very unhealthy with the American lifestyle and how convenient fast food has become. Normally when people become over weight its not just because they can't control their eating habits. Most overweight people also don't exercise as much along with the bad eating habits.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that people are addicted to food as well as air for the only reason that all of us eat and we breath. This is the basic things that we do to survive.Most of the people that are overweight in United States or all over the world is because they don't read the labels of the foods which most of them are not true because they add suger to the foods more that appear in the labels. That's what people consume more calories than normal and most of them are overweight.
ReplyDeleteFood addiction is a stretch. I think it may be more along the lines of the enjoyment of the taste and find it as a way to control themselves. One can control how much he or she does or does not eat. When a person feels down, it is a popular belief he or she eat's their feelings away. This may be because they need to taste something and keep themselves busy. Ice cream is linked with depression and I believe it is because of its high flavor count and enjoyability.
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