We all know that an unhealthy relationship leaves you feeling unfulfilled and dissatisfied. No matter how hard you try to make it work, there is no way to get past the fact that the relationship is sapping your emotional health.
The relationship you have with food can be detrimental to your health and weight loss when it is an unhealthy one.
Here are ten signs that you have an unhealthy relationship with food:
1 – You Think About Food All the Time
When you have access to food when you are hungry, there is no reason for thoughts of food to consume your mind and interfere with your life. Constant thoughts about food are a sign that you may be denying yourself nutrients your body needs.
2 – You Prefer to Eat in Private
If you can’t handle eating with people without feeling self-conscious, or obsessing over what your options may be at a restaurant or party, chances are your food relationship isn’t healthy.
3 – You Suffer from Food Guilt
There is no reason you should spend hours beating yourself up for having a second slice of cake or eating an extra breadstick. If you are spending more time mentally beating yourself up for eating something than you spent enjoying it, you are suffering from food guilt.
4 – You Deny Yourself the Foods You Crave
A healthy relationship with foods means that you know what you want as well as what you need in your diet. It also means that you accommodate both your wants and your needs. Often cravings are our body’s way of telling us we are lacking something in our diets.
5 – You Cut Out Entire Food Groups
Healthy eating is all about balance. Rigid perfectionism in your diet is a precursor for disordered eating and a definite warning sign to an unhealthy relationship with food.
6 – You Eat the Same Foods All the Time
Trying new foods isn’t something that that should cause you anxiety unless you have a severe food allergy causing the anxiety. If the idea of trying a new food causes fears and anxiety to surface, you could have bigger problems to deal with.
7 – Your Emotions Control Your Eating Habits
If you eat to procrastinate, to entertain yourself, to reward yourself, or to console yourself, you are allowing your emotions to control your eating habits. This means that you aren’t listening to your body about what its needs are.
8 – You are Controlled by Food Rules
There are no hard and fast rules that you need to follow in order to lose, maintain, or gain weight. If your mind is more concerned with following unnecessary rules when it comes to food instead of listening to your body, chances are, you need to evaluate your relationship with food.
9 – You Punish Yourself for Breaking Your Food Rules
Choosing to eat a salad for lunch because you know you are going out for pizza for dinner is called balance. Going on a week-long juice cleanse because you ate three slices instead of two is a sign that you need to evaluate your relationship with food.
10 – You Have No Self-Control when it Comes to Food
A couple signs that you have no self-control when it comes to food are when you can’t have certain foods in the house without eating them, or you find yourself eating a full bag of chips without realizing it until afterward. A lack of self-control regarding food is a definite sign you need some help with your relationship relating to food.
If you have identified that your relationship with food is unhealthy, you might be wondering what the next steps are. If you find that your negative relationship with food is affecting your quality of life, then it might be time to consider talking to a therapist or a doctor and working through why you have the relationship with food that you do.
