That’s a very real experience for many who are dealing with addiction. Now I’m not talking about taking your phone to the bathroom, but food addiction. An issue that stems from chemicals that routinely screw with the functions in the brain.
And we can break that down a bit further, because what happens in the case of food addiction, actually only happens in the “animal” or hypothalamus part of the brain. That’s the part of your grey mass that is in charge of the survival instincts and is responsible for the creation of dopamine which gives us increased motivation to seek reward. In short, a bunch of boffins have discovered that this is because the brain recognises dense, high calorie food and then goes about flooding your system with dopamine or the “pleasure chemical”, tricking you into thinking you need more.
And if the odds weren’t already stacked against you, they’ve now established a closely related link between that and the memory part of the brain. Things called neuropeptides that stimulate eating also stimulate memory, learning, reinforcement and reward. Enhanced memories of the rewarding feeling of eating junk, or simply too much, provide you with motivation and temptation to do it again.
And as it happens, another bunch of clever people who have a profound understanding of this, make huge money from manufacturing and marketing junk food. With their unlimited resources, they’ve managed to saturate the market with junk that has the perfect combination of salt, fat and sugar to achieve what they refer to as “The Bliss Point”.
So, there we have it. You’re naturally attracted to food that isn’t good for you, it’s cheap and very accessible. And once you eat it, your own brain has been manipulated into craving it again. It’s a vicious cycle.
But it is possible to break these addictive cycles, and ultimately create much better habits. It’s not as simple as realising you need to stop having intimate dinners for four, by yourself. But it is all about getting some real advice based on understanding what’s happening with you! And, dare I say it, it’s the right time of the year to make that commitment.
NZKM specialises in this, we design programmes to help you discover the right you!
Call us now, and make that appointment for the new year.