Home Identifying Unhealthy Relationships With Food by Andrew Laker | Jul 29, 2016 Pixabay (?) (?) By Lynn Ramberg, ACSM CPT (?) Do you or does someone you know have an unhealthy relationship with food? These five signs may indicate a dysfunctional relationship with food. 1. Preoccupied with food Most of us think about food but when it becomes an obsession that our eating habits are driven by these thoughts instead of actual appetite. 2. Hiding food Feeling ashamed will drive some people to hide food around their house or in the car so other's won't see them eat it. Shame and embarrassment from the basic act of eating even if the food isn't unhealthy. 3. Guilty feelings after eating Many of us have done this, overeaten, especially during events or holidays. An unhealthy sign is the frequency this occurs or when it occurs with even the healthiest of foods. Guilt can also drive other unhealthy behaviors such as the chronic dieter or excessive exerciser to "justify" a meal. 4. Eating during times of stress Emotional eaters are the most common form of dysfunctional eating. People will eat when happy, sad, angry, tired and all of the other emotions we feel. Think about it, this started the moment we were born and we started to cry, we were fed as a response, so unlearning this is really hard. This can lead to unwanted weight gain quickly. 5. Extreme dieting The actual definition of "diet" is what you eat. A cows diet is grass and water. So, chronic dieters frequently engage in extreme practices and eliminate entire food groups or restrict too many calories. The end result is deprivation which can trigger cravings for certain foods. If you feel that you have an unhappy relationship with food, talk to your doctor about some of the local resources to help you get the "healthy" relationship with food back. Show oldest on top Show newest on top Leave a comment Load more comments Thank you for the comment! Your comment must be approved first You've already submitted a review for this item Thank you! Your review has been submitted successfully Login to be able to comment Leave a comment Comment cannot be empty Rating is required Click to add (?) Click to add (?) New code Please type the code above You typed the code incorrectly. Please try again Want more stories like this? Subscribe to our E-newsletter Share this blog post: Go to Healthy Tomorrow home