Know danger signs of food addictions

By Jeffrey D. Murrah

Visions of sugarplums reminds us of the holiday season. For parents it is a time of responsibilities, challenges and joys. The emphasis on food preparation and eating signals dangers of overeating and food addictions. Although for many families the holidays are joyful, for food addicts, they are dangerous. If people in your family emphasize foods and eating rather than family relationships and achievement, the problems of food addictions may exist.

As parents we can look for the danger signs in our children, spouse or other relative. Food addictions can be halted when they are identified early. Some of the more common behaviors to look for include:

* Preoccupation with food. This shows up as overconcern about when the next meal is, 
   what it consist of, and when the meal after that will be. Food addicts concern themselves 
   more with food than with the people in their families. Many times the persons with food 
   addictions will prepare of help prepare the food so as to give them greater access to it.

* Secret eating. The person sneaks off and eats food in a manner to avoid being seen. The 
   person may also be overly concerned with others watching them eat. The secretiveness 
   often included sneaking and stealing food. Many times children exhibiting such behaviors 
   are viewed as "cute" and the behavior is laughed at or ignored. Sweets and chocolate are 
   often the foods of choice. Secrecy often hides the danger of such behavior, even to the 
   point of hiding the food or candy wrappers. Rapid eating is another easily observed clue 
   associated with problem behavior.

Bingeing is a sign of eating problems. Bingeing is often accompanied by purging. Purging frequently occurs within 30 minutes of the meal. Sometimes the purging is in the form of overuse of laxatives. In the case of bingeing, the person finds it difficult to stop after a reasonable amount of food is eaten.

Blaming eating on others often occurs. In individuals with food problems, the desire is to eat, and any crisis available serves to justify and eating episode. It is common for arguments to be started just for the benefit of eating as a way to cope.

It your children show many of the signs mentioned, changes are needed. Foods that lead to problems can be reduced or removed. Diets and lifestyle can be changed into a health focused one rather than sugar focused. Efforts can be made to improve family relationships so that you enjoy each other as much or more than you enjoy the cooking.

The holidays are a good time to improve family relationships. The holidays can also be used to hide overeating and food addictions in our families. As our children have 'visions of sugarplums', we as parents need to be alert for candy wrappers or laxative containers under their beds that may signal hidden problems.

Jeffrey D. Murrah is a Marriage and Family Therapist in private practice with offices in Pasadena and La Porte. He writes a monthly column for the school district Education Section in the Pasadena Citizen. For more information, call his office at (713) 944-4335 or his website at www.restorethefamily.com.


Back to Parent University main page