Is it possible to become addicted to food? If so, is there a way to get free from food addiction? In this post, I am going to share some proven ways to identify food addiction and how to address it.
Unfortunately, food addiction is a real problem, and for those who live with it, freedom sometimes seems unattainable. However, there is hope.
You can get free from food addiction. Learn how we combine Jesus and keto and develop a healthy relationship with food.
When a person is dealing with a destructive eating pattern, it involves many factors, and rarely is it just one issue. This is why it’s essential to get to the root of the problem if lasting freedom is to occur.
The Vicious Cycle Of Addiction
Like all forms of addiction, it has the potential to create absolute havoc in a person’s life. What’s more, you can find yourself quickly in a classic addiction cycle, making it seem impossible to get free from food addiction.
It is a cycle where you feel pain, and you use food to numb that pain. Then you feel shame about using food. So, you then use food again to numb the pain from the shame.
To get free from food addiction, you first need to realize the destructive cycle you have created.
The only real solution to getting free from food addiction is to address the shame and allow the original pain to be addressed.
Food Addiction Doesn’t Happen Overnight
It may seem like your food addiction came out of nowhere. However, it’s a habit that develops over a long time.
You might be surprised that you have memories tied to your food experiences. Some of these have shaped how you look at food, and it can be challenging to change them without support.
If you grew up in a home where the “clean plate” policy was enforced, you shouldn’t be surprised when you find yourself eating everything set before you. This pattern was built in you years ago.
A Week In The Life Of A Food Addict
Sunday rolls in, and you vow that this week will be different. You promise that this time, you will stick to your goals of cutting out the bad carbs and eating cleaner.
During Sunday morning service, the pastor quotes 1 Corinthians 6:19: Do you not know that your bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.
The service ends, and you leave confident because the message you just heard confirms your decision. Staying on course on Sunday was a breeze.
Food Temptation Is Real
Then Monday arrives, and with it, many things need your attention. The stress of the morning has you searching for some comfort food.
You glance at your packed lunch, but it no longer appeals to you. So, you toss it and decide to skip lunch altogether, vowing to eat a healthy dinner instead.
Once home, you find yourself starving and realizing you are missing key ingredients for that healthy meal you wanted to create.
Suddenly, takeout sounds like a better plan. So, pizza it is. It’s ok; you tell yourself tomorrow, I will get back to my goals.
Guilt Consumes You
Tuesday morning, you wake up with a massive headache and are racked with guilt over last night’s pizza binge. The plan to only eat one slice failed, and you ate several slices and finished up the scraps of crust the family left behind instead.
I can’t do this, you tell yourself. What’s wrong with me? Will I ever get free from my food addiction?
At work, you spend the day feeling weak, ashamed, and guilty about another failed attempt. Maybe next week will be better, you tell yourself.
You then decide that since you blew the first few days of the week, you might as well wait till next week to try again.
Unfortunately, you feel trapped in what has become a vicious cycle of destruction, and you start to believe that there is no hope for you to get free from food addiction.
Does any of this sound familiar to you? If so, you may have created a poor relationship with food that is causing your addiction.
Signs That You Have A Problem With Food
- You frequently get cravings for certain foods, even after a large meal.
- Once you give in to the food craving, you eat much more than you intended.
- You eat the desired food until you feel excessively full.
- You often feel guilty after eating certain foods, yet you can’t seem to stop eating them.
- You make all sorts of excuses as to why you should eat something you crave.
- You have repeatedly tried to quit eating or set rules (including cheat meals/days) about certain foods but have been unsuccessful.
- You find yourself hiding your consumption of unhealthy foods from others.
- You feel you have lost control over eating unhealthy foods, even though you know they are to blame for your poor health and weight gain.
According to Healthline, if you can relate to 4–5 of these, you probably have a problem with food. If you can relate to 6 or more, then you are most likely addicted to food.
An interesting study points to the evidence for sugar addiction and why it is a true phenomenon.
Eat To Live, Not Live To Eat
Let’s look closer and see how food can become an addiction. Can we all admit that we don’t just eat food for nourishment? The truth is, we eat for many reasons, and herein lies the problem.
You see, we use food to celebrate, to comfort us after a long, stressful day, and as a way to remove boredom. An emotional eater will eat when happy, sad, angry, or when all seems well.
In other words, there is no shortage of opportunities to use food for purposes it was never intended.
What’s wrong with all these scenarios? In all these instances, we are giving food way too much power. When we turn over control to something that can never meet an actual internal need, it always spells disaster.
Don’t Let Food Trap You
Food can ensnare you when you allow it to be more than it was ever meant to be. Food cannot nourish our souls, despite people calling certain foods “comfort foods.” They can never meet an emotional need.
We may love how it tastes going down, but once you move away from the plate, you despise how you feel and resent how it controls you.
The Bible teaches us to rid ourselves of anything that can trap us. “Let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1).
Release The Shame
What’s worse, we punish ourselves when we lose control and then eat what we know we shouldn’t to feel better.
First things first: Get rid of the shame. We always remind our Fittoserve Community Group that a poor meal choice does not define them.
Beating yourself up by overeating too many carbohydrates gets you to know where and keeps you further entrenched in the addiction to food.
We quickly remind them of the Biblical scripture in Romans 8:1: So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. To forgive themselves and move on.
There is no point in dwelling on the past. Instead, we tell them to make their next meal their best one—not their next week’s meal but their very next meal.
Stop Looking Back
It’s the constant looking back at the mistake that will push you over into an area where you just want to throw up your arms and give up.
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This is where most people trip up. They blow their carbohydrate allowance on Monday and then eat poorly for the rest of the week.
Why does this happen? Guilt. When we learn to surrender our mistakes and move on, we can find true freedom.
Just like a parent doesn’t stop loving their child when they make a mistake, you don’t toss all your good choices by one food mishap.
Forgive Yourself And Move Forward
It’s essential to forgive yourself and move forward. In time, your good choices will outweigh your mess-ups. Eventually, it becomes a new pattern in your life.
Next, know your trigger foods. Inevitably, most people who struggle with food issues have certain foods that, once allowed in, it’s as if a button gets stuck in their brain, and a downward path to destruction begins.
Meal Plan For Success
Arm yourself properly by always planning every meal. This is especially important as you begin the process of breaking your food addiction.
Don’t find yourself staring at an open fridge or in a supermarket aisle, wondering what your next meal should be.
This pattern sets you up to fail. For someone who deals with food addiction, meal planning is a crucial and necessary step.
Choose God, Not Food
Consider getting our Faith-Ignited Keto 30-Day Devotional. It will teach you how to combine the Christian faith with the keto diet and how to lean on your faith for maximum transformation.
Through daily reflections, Bible verses, and practical tips, you’ll find strength, joy, and fulfillment in your journey toward wholeness and wellness.
Whether new to the keto lifestyle or a seasoned veteran, this devotional offers insights and inspiration to support your path to a healthier, more vibrant life.
Decide never to use food to medicate whatever you may be dealing with. Understand that food was never intended to have so much leverage in your life. Instead, hand all your life issues to God.
Let Him be the one who fills your needs, not food that will always fall short.
Decide to allow God to help you not eat the trigger foods again.
If you suffer from any form of food addiction, I urge you to find a support group to assist you on your journey to get free from your food addiction.
You can learn more about our health transformation by reading our blog’s about page.
Randy’s Jesus And Keto Testimony
My husband Randy battled with food addiction for the majority of his life.
It wasn’t until he handed the battle entirely over to God that he was finally set free from food addiction.
His hunger for God had to become more significant than that of the foods he was craving.
In reality, Randy’s freedom is a choice he has had to make daily. He has consistently learned to deny his flesh and learn more about God over the past four years.
Randy also discovered that with a low-carb keto food plan, he was no longer craving the trigger foods that would cause him to overeat. Instead, he was able to keep his blood sugar stable and stop the constant hunger hormones from controlling him.
What if you feel you need the support of health professionals?
Know that there is no shame in getting assistance. Everyone can use more support in their lives, and the fact that you decide to get help is something to be proud of, not ashamed of.
Thankfully, there are many health professionals and support groups that can help you overcome your addiction to food.
The following are some free options that are available.
Overeaters Anonymous (OA), GreySheeters Anonymous
(GSA), Food Addicts Anonymous (FAA) and Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous (FA).
Join Our Jesus And Keto Movement
Looking for an online support system to help you stay on keto? As a family, we came to the keto diet, looking at it from a Christian perspective. As believers, we live our lives supported by God’s grace.
So when the Holy Spirit led us to combine our Christian faith and the keto diet, we did so in hopes of finding lasting transformation. When we followed the Holy Spirit’s prompting, we got on the path to real transformation.
Knowing firsthand the benefits of this decision, we have created a closed Christian group that is using the keto diet to transform their lives. We invite you to join our Private Facebook Group and see if it’s not the key you have been missing.
Be sure to request our FREE Jesus and Keto E-Book (First 7 Days). We hope it blesses you.
Fittoservegroup Keto App
Looking for a fast way to access our keto recipes? We’ve got you covered. There’s an app for that. Yup, there’s a Fit To Serve Group App that will make your keto diet a delicious breeze!
Access hundreds of recipes that are all sugar-free, gluten-free, and keto-friendly.
Enjoy early access to recipes before they go live on the website. Plus, there are bonus recipes that are exclusive to the app. Make your own personal cookbooks that you can use to organize your favorite recipes.
Search recipes by title, ingredients, keywords, and categories. Of course, every recipe shows complete nutritional facts. Get the Fit to Serve Group App for easy-to-follow keto recipes made with easy-to-source ingredients.
The app is loaded with hundreds of yummy recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and even desserts!
Learn more by visiting our Fit To Serve Group App Page.