Food Addiction Cycle

The food addiction cycle and the craving cycle are a concept intended for better understanding of the process. This is not completely described, but rather a coarse model of understanding. It is confused as the -- carbohydrate excess cycle, insulin overshot, fat storage, premature hunger, eating -- cycle overlays or is (or can be) a parallel process that adds to the issue. Also note that some fats and some proteins can start this cycle.

The craving cycle can be understood as a group of lists, pick one of more from each column, and then proceed to the next list. The first step in the cycle is the cue step, a cue of some type, cue, image, location, time, or a thought. Thinking is dangerous for us obsessives. We can avoid some of the environmental cues, but not within modern society, perhaps at work or some of the time.

The second list is more of the same, just stronger. If food is presented, or priming aka tasting, smell, sight, or more thinking, perhaps associated with a "liking", desire, or "wouldn't it be nice". This is appetite development stage. The wet mouth stage, if we notice, or as some of us mop up drool. The ability to taste, to like food, and a intense desire for food all vary in strength. Some people have little desire for food and do no accept or acknowledge this issue, so if you are one of those FO.

We can separate from cue/situation if necessary at this point. Walk away. Go do something else, not food related. Or think or say "that is not food", or "that is poison to me", the most powerful of methods.

This is usually followed with eating the forbidden food, or not. We consume or produce chemicals in the brain that have a effect on our thinking, desires, motivation, learning, memory, or we may recall tastes, and pleasant feelings. This can be totally unconscious as well as consciously. The eating strengthens the desire for more, and weakens the resistance. Those that think willpower is useful can FO.

The chemicals produce or consumed (parts or whole) are often opioid peptides (wheat, grains, diary, nuts) or endorphins (omega 6 oils), or other like dopamine, serotonin, stimulus, relaxants. These
produce feelings of liking, strong desire for more, desires of all sorts if more is not an option, craving, grasping, intense desire for more, and the like. These desires can be very strong. This is the reason that moderation is a suckers game, if you are a addict.

There are other causes of food desire. Stress refeeding is a common learned behavior. This becomes a conditioned, unconscious reaction. If carbohydrate is used as refeed material, the insulin storage cycle is often started, so overeating is normal.

There is another problem, left desiring more after an adequate meal, even low-carb, zero carb, or the like. Some of us cannot stop. Satiation does not happen. Satiety may after a hour or so, some of the time.

It is impossible to explain the strength of the desire for food to people who have little desire. The only solution is to totally avoid the addictive foods. That may mean eating boiled cabagge and beef burgers the remainder of my life.

But what do I know. Breath, smile and enjoy what life has to offer.

Opioid based food addiction

Do some of us product opioids
as a result of eating some foods?

Yes

So if we are addicted to food,
is it the opioid? Likely.

So what foods?
Wheat, barley... Glutins, Gladins
And dairy proteins,
butter, cheese

So abstinence is the way
out of addiction.

Now no butter, no cheese.

But the question is are we more sensitive
than normal people to opioids, or
do we produce more, as have
the enzyme to split the opioid peptide
out of the protein chains?

Food addiction

Beth's post got me thinking:
http://weightmaven.org/2011/09/30/all-or-nothing

What you are describing is overeating, not addiction. The craving for week, months is the difference. If you do not crave it severely, it is not addiction. Do you have the iron will to resist cravings, rekindled repeatedly? Try having one cigarette, and repeatedly quieting. It is worse that cigarettes. Unless it that bad of craving, you are not dealing with addiction, but something else.

Food Addiction is a bitch, and if you have it and get clear, it would be just stupid to go near it. Once we kick addiction, the big millstone is gone, and then we get to deal with a series of little ones. Weight loss, those final few pounds are not comparable to addiction.

Hyperinsulinemia / Insulin resistance / carbohydrates / leptin resistance also produces a mild urge to eat, but is less sever and dissipates over a few hours. This can be handled as you describe. These are very different animals; both may lead to overeating.

Of course, there is overproduction of  ghrelin, other hormones, gut peptides that needs also be resisted or tapered off of. These may be producing excess hunger, greater hunger that out need. For some of us, hunger all the time is the our normal condition at constant weight.

This dose not include palatability issues, reward issue, habit, social, custom, or  all those other reasons to overeat, which the next day, one can simply dust the crumbs off and go on with life.

Food Addiction

Is addition real or is it addiction like behavior?  Does it really matter?

True addiction, according to Dr. Gabor Mate, involves four issues:
Endorphins; the molecule of life, a group of proteins that is associated with emotions, pain relief, love, reward, hedonic responce.
Dopamine; a form of dopa, act as a neurotransmitter in the brain, it stimulates, related to curiosity, vitality, excitement, exploration, drugs, food, sex.
Adrenlin; more of the above, plus stress reduction, fear, or low blood sugar.
Low Impulse Control; our free won't if you will. If our impulse control is low, we have a problem.

It does not matter if addiction is true or not, the solution is the same, totally give it up the problem food or behavior, but wait, I can not give up eating. I would be just getting use to it, then die.

How do you know if you are addicted? Give it up. If easy to get off and stay off, you are likely not addicted to that item. Calories may still be an issue, but addiction may not be.

I personally am addicted to sugar and wheat. These I can give up. Poor impulse control, now there is one more thing to put on my inventory of characteristics, along with compulsive obsessive, control freak, unsatisfiable, and others.

Are you or have you been addicted to foods?