How Your Feelings Fuel Food Addiction

There are all sorts of emotions that can affect our wellness and this includes worry, fear, anger, grief, sadness and guilt.  Feeling that you are not accepted, a personal failure or that you are being overwhelmed by large financial burdens. 

The bottom line is that who we are is always in a delicate balance between chemistry and energy and when any type of energy, even if it is just emotional, becomes blocked and we become addicted to emotional eating.

What is Emotional Eating?

Emotional eating refers to people who eat because of the way they feel rather than when they are

hungry. Many people who overeat do so because they become obsessed with overeating a certain type of food. They associated gorging on this food with nurturing oneself. Yet others eat of anger or in defiance of someone who wants them to go on a diet. Some overeating behaviours are almost vengeful; the person is “biting back” at a world that they feel is swallowing them whole. 

Stuffing Your Anger

Many people overeat because they are “stuffing your anger.”  When we are infuriated we want to fill our mouths with something warm, salty and chewy.  This relates to the primal drive in us that evolutionary biologists say goes way back to our caveman days where we associated eating raw fresh kill with comfort. It is a very primal hard-wired urge that can help soothe us when we feel deprived. Many studies have shown that people who go on diets that are too strict do not tend to stick to themIn essence, you are an emotional eater if you find yourself using the eating of food (usually too much food or fatty, sweet and salty foods) to cope with the usual stresses of life. Many people eat every time they experience a rush in adrenalin.  They will give themselves the permission to break their diet because they associate the concept of celebrating with food with achievement.  This means that even extremely happy moments can lead a person to stray from their diet.Despite the fact that there are other ways of producing these feel good chemicals in our brains such as exercising, getting out to see friends and indulging in hobbies we like, many of us still become addicted to food.  Eating fatty, salty and sweet foods are there surest ways to change our brain chemical composition so that we feel  good” However the “high” does not last long and like an addict, we eat some more to get another hit of escapism through being a foodie.

By the way, meditation and exercise can go along way towards satiating the dissatisfaction that seems to come with going on a vegan diet at first.  .So if you can, it is best to try and deal with your emotional eating disorders and issues in other ways and consult with a dietician or naturopaathic doctor who can help you with this issue, which if left unchecked can lead to all kinds of health problems.For more information or to book a consultation about anti-aging, diet and weight loss programs or any health issue you may be experiencing, visit the Pinewood Natural Health Clinic website that has a list of full services and products at www.pinewood.ca or call our Toronto Office at  (416)-656- 8100.  We also have an office in Pickering, Ontario at (905)-427-0057. You can also email us at info@pinewoodhealth.ca and we would be happy to answer any question that you have about our holistic health services.

Why It a Good Idea to Lose Weight Now!

Losing weight is not just about looking fantastic in a bikini or living up to that old saying “You can never be too thin or too rich.”  In fact, they should change that saying to “You can never be too healthy!”

Obesity is Expensive and Lowers Your Quality of Life

Aside from improving your health, being overweight can be quite expensive. It can be hard to find clothes that fit and when you do, they are offered by clothing stores that charge a little more for that extra bit of fabric that is needed to fit your girth.

Further, more obesity leads to a lot of diseases that have treatments that are not necessarily covered by OHIP or employee insurance plans.  Obesity leads to a whole whack of disorders including diabetes.  Joint problems, sleep apnea, respiratory diseases, reflux diseases, kidney diseases and even infertility. In many cases, these problems are eliminated if the person can find a way to lose weight.

Although managing the health effects of being overweight is costly, the effect the condition has on your overall quality of life is also expensive.  People who are overweight tend to go for walks less, swim less and even play with their children or grandchildren less.  The simplest activities, such as climbing three flights of stairs, can seem like an unattainable feat.  Many overweight individuals are unable to fit in a train seat or a theatre seat at a movie theater.

The immobility and social isolation that obesity or being overweight causes can also cause a vicious circle to be perpetuate itself. The more sedentary you are, the more weight you gain and the more inclined you are to stay in and so on.

Losing Just 10% Of Your Weight Is Helpful

Getting rid of even ten percent of your weight can improve how you feel and help you enjoy life again. By losing just 10 percent of your body weight, you can lower your cholesterol and reduce your blood pressure, says G. Ken Goodrick, PhD, psychologist and associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. High cholesterol and elevated blood pressure are two major risk factors for heart disease.

According to Karen Miller Kovach, a spokesman for Weight Watchers, “If you're overweight, you're at increased risk for type 2 diabetes, which means your body can't make enough, or properly use, insulin, a hormone that helps convert food to usable energy. By losing just 10 percent of your body weight, you'll improve your body's ability to use the insulin it makes, possibly preventing the onset of the disease,” Miller-Kovach also says. If you already have type 2 diabetes, shedding that 10 percent may improve your symptoms and possibly prevent complications, she adds.

Just a 10 percent weight loss increases feelings of vigor and vitality," says Miller-Kovach. "You'll feel better and have more energy."

Finally, we are our harshest judges. When we are overweight, we tend to be critical of ourselves. It can lower our self-esteem, cause fatigue and depression, stomach and sleep problems. Changing your eating habits can help you lose weight and develop a better self-image.

Here at the Pinewood Natural Health Clinic we have several plans and solutions to help you lose weight and feel better in general.

For more information or to book a consultation about anti-aging, diet and weight loss programs or any health issue you may be experiencing, visit the Pinewood Natural Health Clinic website that has a list of full services and products at www.pinewood.ca or call our Toronto Office at  (416)-656- 8100.  We also have an office in Pickering, Ontario at (905)-427-0057. You can also email us at info@pinewoodhealth.ca and we would be happy to answer any question that you have about our holistic health services