Is Chocolate Your Kryptonite

Is chocolate a problem for you like kryptonite was a problem for Superman?

Do you need to eat chocolate everyday or when you’re feeling stressed or emotional and can’t stop at one piece.

Do you head home after a difficult day desperate to devour that chocolate waiting for you the minute you walk in the door?

Or perhaps you can’t even wait to get home and you have to stop at the service station on route, only to feel disgusted with yourself afterwards and promise not to do it tomorrow. But you do and you continue to do it over and over and over again. The merry-go-round of emotions, craving, and disgust make eating more may be a constant source of annoyance for you.

Or perhaps it’s not chocolate that is your thing, rather your kryptonite could be fast food, potato chips or junk food. Maybe it’s lollies, cakes or ice-cream. Do you open the lid but can’t stop at one, instead you don’t feel satisfied until you have eaten the last scoop or the last chip? Hmmmm, and then you must get rid of all of the evidence, right?

So how come certain types of carbohydrate rich foods (with lots of simple sugars) are our kryptonite? The answer can be found in Dr Keeney’s book “Chocolate is My Kryptonite”.

He explains that

“Carbohydrate rich foods regulate your emotions!” “They really do work” (Dr Keeney).

McCarty also says

“If we didn’t get something out of it we wouldn’t do it. We are not a bunch of idiots” (McCarty “Addicted to Food” - Netflix).

So what do we get out of these types of foods?

“Well, it is a quick rise in serotonin, that feel good neurotransmitter in our brain, says Somer (author of “Food and Mood”). Somer says

“the mere touch of sugar on the tongue produces an immediate endorphin rush. Thus you feel good immediately after eating a doughnut, because of the boost in endorphins, which is followed by a lingering good mood induced by the slow-acting increase in serotonin”.

Our Brain is involved .....

Keene agrees, by explaining that when we have upsets or difficulties, our serotonin levels can drop and by feeding your feelings it temporarily increases serotonin levels and you do feel better.

The Downside ....

However, Somer says there is also a downside. It can switch on cravings for sweet and creamy foods and over time, these quick fixes can strengthen the addiction to endorphins, those morphine like chemicals.

What’s the solution?

Both Dr Keene and McCarty agree that recovery includes a combination of eating from a healthy food plan that includes complex carbohydrates of wholegrain breads, brown rice and starchy vegetables etc (to stabilise our serotonin) as well as dealing with our feelings. McCarty goes on to say “It’s not what you’re eating, but what’s eating you!”

She explains that feelings can be confused with hunger - "we feel sad, we go eat, we feel annoyed, we go eat, we feel anxious, we go eat".

By hooking into and understanding our feelings, the thoughts behind them and by learning how to re-order these processes, then recovery is possible. Pathways Counselling can assist individuals in dealing with any emotional / thinking aspects of this recovery process.

References:

Keene, Dr M, "Chocolate is My Kryptonite"

Somer, E., "Food & Mood"

McCarty, T., "Addicted to Food" (Netflix Series)