Mind Your Eating Habits

There is an article I have been reading lately,   the article in regard to human eating behaviors. It is an interesting article, it propose some new and different view about our common eating habits. You won’t have to loosen your belt buckle here but you need to open another window in your mind.

Do you eat only when hungry?

Do you live to eat or eat to live?

Do you skip meals because you forget to

eat or plan the next meal as soon as you

have finished one?

These questions sound quite simple and general, right? If you think that, then you are WRONG! The answer to these questions will differ from person to person and are actually much more complicated than we could ever imagine.

There are association between our thoughts, feelings, moods and the food we consume, which could either benefit or compromise our health and well-being. The relationship we have with food begins in childhood. What we are taught by our parents as well as the different eating related behaviors we observe, will influence all of us right into adulthood.

The three most common ways we are shaped in early years of life are:

1.       You are taught to eat everything on your plate, and if you don’t eat it all you will be punished. In this situation is that different eating habits and quantity capability of children aren’t taken in account. Thus, we learned that we had to eat what everyone else is eating around us and had to finish all the food, even if we weren’t hungry.

2.      We associate social activities and gatherings with food. So what tend to happen is that we over emphasis the food factor. The focus on social interaction and communication is often overshadowed by the food we consume during these gatherings. Why don’t we try getting together with friends without including food as a central variable?

3.      One of the eating habits shaped by early conditioning is that foods can be used as a reward or punishment. I’m pretty sure all of us remember being given chocolate, sweets, ice-cream or other snacks such treats as a reward for good behavior. This is somewhat contradictory in what we have been taught. If sweets are bad for us, then why are they used it as rewards for good behavior? Isn’t that sending a mixed message since sugar filled artificial junk items shouldn’t really be used as rewards if they are bad for us, should they?

Therefore, if you have been eating healthy and on the right track about diet and exercise, giving yourself a day off by allowing tons of calorie filled carbohydrates and sugary type food might not be a wise reward at all, but rather a regressive punishment. Instead, buy yourself a new outfit rather than a massive meal.

Most of us eat for reasons that may not due to hunger. We tend to use food to help ease underlying emotions such as loneliness, depression, frustration, fear, worry anxiety, or even as a way of celebration.

If feeling bad, food might help us deal with negative feelings, temporarily. In the long term, however, dealing with stress by eating, especially those wrong foods, can actually amplify negative feelings because the root problem which causing the stress is not being dealt with solved directly. Moreover, you may struggle with feelings of guilt which due to over eating and your self-image might become negative if overweight.

Above is a short clip about how to stop bad eating habits.

Just remember, as long as you’re not eating excessively or mindlessly munching to relieve yourself, feeding your mood with the delicious foods can be a healthy and effective way to help you function at your physical and emotional best. You can click here to check out 7 secrets for stress relief that  don't involve food. Have a Good Day!