subject: Too Much Of A Good Thing Is Bad [print this page] Lets face itfood is great but they do not provide escape from the rigours of daily stress, strain and turns of fortune ! These are never going to go away as they are facts of life. But to take recourse to overindulgence in food, an indulgence that transmutes into addiction.now thats foolish as well as majorly damaging. Binging or compulsive eating refers to the uncontrollable urge to gorge on excess quantities of food and as a result gaining weight that takes one into the realms of obesity. What is alarming about this tendency is that the underlying motivation is a release from mental stress.
An overeating disorder can start very early on in life when food is used as a palliative frequently, as a salve for tension and stress. If not taken care of immediately, it develops into an eating pattern that becomes a habit and food becomes a way of coping because they never learnt to deal with emotional problems . This phenomenon is not to be confused with bulimia or anorexia, two other eating disorders. People suffering from an overeating disorder are aware that they are taking recourse to food as escape but are unable to exercise control. With increasing weight, dieting for compensation becomes more and more difficult. Thus victims of compulsive eating become trapped in a vicious cycle of binge, diet, more binge. Accompanying this cycle are feelings of powerlessness, guilt, shame and failure that can go on forever.
There are identifying characteristics of people who are prone to compulsive eating. An overeating disorder makes one eat uncontrollably even when not physically hungry. The eating is rapid and very often indulged in away from public view due to feelings of guilt, depression, social withdrawal and an awareness that alls not well and definitely not normal. The onset of obesity triggers the yo-yo fluctuations of weight due to temporary measures but usually, the victim is unable to gain control. If left untreated, it can lead to serious medical conditions including high cholesterol, diabetes, cardiac problems, hypertension, bone deterioration and psychological breakdown.
This malfunctioning is almost epidemic in proportion in the developed world, with the developing nations are fast catching up. But society has woken up to the seriousness of this malaise that can actually culminate in death. Centers that offer treatment that includes talk therapy, medical and nutritional counseling have come up across the globe. Specially designed programmers aid the treatment of this disease. Members of Overeater Anonymous have a popular saying ."when you are addicted to drugs you put the tiger in the cage to recover; when you are addicted to food you put the tiger in the cage, but take it out three times a day for a walk." The solution finally lies in the power of our minds to ensure discipline and self-control.
