What Is Food Addiction?

Food addiction is defined by a preoccupation with food in every way; it is the key tool by which a person handles their emotions, be it positive or negative. Watch as psychologist Ramani Durvasula, PhD, explains the key facets of food addiction.

Transcript

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Food addiction is a condition where we see a person is preoccupied with food in just about

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every way. Either they're eating it, they're thinking about it, they're worried about it. And it also becomes the key tool by which this person handles

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their emotions. It's a go to place when a person is sad, and interestingly also when they're happy. For example, a celebration they think about let's

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go out and have a big meal. So it becomes a one-stop shop for emotions. And it's a kind of thought that overtakes a person's mind

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all the time. We can compare it to any addiction. If you talk to somebody who's addicted to drugs or alcohol, they'll say the same thing.