Although the medical industry does not recognize food addiction as a disorder in itself (at least not yet), it does recognize food addiction as a new substance use disorder. In other words, the medical industry recognize that foods with high levels of refined carbohydrates and added fats (e.g., ice cream, cookies, chips) also known as highly palatable foods (e.g. junk food) are highly addictive and they can lead to significant increases in loss-of-control eating.

 
Food addiction is very real. I for one didn’t think I had food addiction until I’ve started to work very closely with clients that had other forms of addictions. When they were describing their experience with addiction I couldn’t help but relate!

So maybe the medical description of food addiction does not resonate with you, but maybe the subjective experience of food addiction will. I realized I was suffering from food addiction when I stopped paying attention to the quantity of food I was eating, but started to pay more attention to the emotional reactions I had to junk food and (most importantly) the emotional reactions I had when there was a lack of junk food.

• My activities didn’t feel complete without fun snacks.
• I would be able to calm down from a highly stressful day or event by procuring junk food snacks
• I would get irritated when plans didn’t involve good food or going out to eat.
• I would get super excited at the thought of my next meal or next treat.
• I would constantly overeat when the food was tasty.
• I would get sad when the activity involving good food was over.
• I would get angry if I was somewhere and the only options were super healthy or bland food.
• I would get upset if I was promised good food, but for some reason it was cancelled.
• My mood was completely dependent on whether there was good food around.

Whether you already know you have food addiction or you’re still exploring the possibility, I wanted to share with you some of the dangers associated with it.

Danger #1: Weight Gain & Obesity

 
Because food addiction is considered a loss of control over the consumption of foods that have high levels of refined carbohydrates and added fats, it usually leads to consuming more calories than necessary. So, naturally, it leads to weight gain and eventually obesity. It is widely known that weight gain and obesity directly increases your chances of suffering from cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes

Danger #2: Diabetes

Food addiction leads to an excessive consumption of foods that will spike your blood sugar. Your body is equipped with processes that can balance that out IF the spike in your blood sugar happens occasionally. However, your body cannot keep up if your blood sugar spikes on a regular basis. Your body will eventually become insulin dependent and you will develop type II diabetes. That may not sound like a big deal, but people with diabetes are more prone to other health issues such as kidney diseases, eye diseases that affect vision, bone disease, nerve pain, more infections, and more complications from those infections!

Danger #3: Mental Health Issues

One danger of food addiction is that if you need consistent access to junk food to feel good, excited, or more calm - what do you think is going to happen when you don’t have access to it?
In comes the anxiety, the boredom, the depressive thoughts.

 
According to Parylak in a 2011 study called The Dark Side of Food Addiction, they found that people who ate a high-fat & high sugar diet felt calmer for up to 2 hours after they had consumed their snack or meal. The study explains that eating these foods too often can change how the brain handles stress and emotions. Over time, this can lead to feeling anxious or depressed when those foods aren’t eaten. In fact when those same people switched from that high-fat/high sugar diet to a healthier low-fat and low-sugar diet, they reported feeling angrier and more hostile. [1]

 
Danger #4: Other addictions, especially internet addiction

According to a recent study by Sadıç et al. published in 2024, they found that adolescents with food addiction were also more prone to be impulsive and also have internet addiction.
In the study, they explain the dangers of one addiction often leading to another because of the person’s tendency to seek out things that provide immediate reward to compensate for unpleasant emotions. [2]
In other words, if left untreated, a food addiction will likely lead to another addiction such as internet addiction.

 
The same study also explains that a food addiction can gradually change the person’s lifestyle where they become more sedentary and more isolated in the comfort of their home - which often leads to other addictions like an internet addiction [2], and in my opinion if you have an internet addiction, it means you technically either have an addiction to TV Shows (streaming services), social media, online shopping, video games, or porn.

 
Conclusion

Again, food addiction is real.

 
Just because it comes with its fair share of risks, it doesn’t mean you should be ashamed.

I too have struggled with it A LOT! But now I’m managing it very well.

 
In fact, I’ve been able to maintain my ideal weight for the past 10 years now because I didn’t try to lose weight by finding a diet, I tackled my food addiction following a process that is deep rooted in psychology.

Now you can too! You can start here by downloading my 5-Minute Blueprint to STOP Snacking at Night! Click Here to Grab Your FREE Copy!

With Love,

Julie Richard

Certified Health Coach| Occupational Therapist| Founder of Ulikeyou Weight Loss| Creator of the Evolve Method

REFERENCES:
1 - Parylak SL, Koob GF, Zorrilla EP. The dark side of food addiction. Physiol Behav. 2011 Jul 25;104(1):149-56. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2011.04.063. Epub 2011 May 8. PMID: 21557958; PMCID: PMC3304465.
2 - Sadıç, Ç. Ç., Özkan, Y., Gerçek, H. G., & Kara, A. (2024). Investigation of the Relationship Between Internet Addiction, Food Addiction and Impulsivity in Adolescents Presenting at the Child Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic. European Journal of Therapeutics, 30(4), 448–455. https://doi.org/10.58600/eurjther2100