Fighting Food Cravings- a Life and Death Issue

My father has been on my mind a lot this week in conjunction with this blog. He passed away a week ago Monday, and so it has been a rough two weeks. In addition, his major ailment was diabetes; otherwise know as the food addiction disease.

I remember back to the days of my childhood. My dad and I used to have a grand old time together sharing fun, sharing food- ice-cream, donuts, and cake being our favorite things. When I was with my dad, there was always a treat in store. In those days I had never even heard of food addiction or the concept of immense cravings.

In short my dad loved to eat and so did I. It was one of the many levels upon which we met. We were very connected and we loved each other a lot.

But as my dad grew older and I began to learn about food addiction I began to wonder, was it really worth it? Could eating all of those 'goodies' for a lifetime really be worth spending your declining years listless in a chair, unable to walk, see, sing, or even swallow. And wouldn't the 'something special' my dad and I had together still have been as strong even without our constant binging on sweets.

And what is odd to note is that by the end my father had lost all capacity to eat anything at all. And in reality, he died from not being able to eat.

So what is there to say about all of this? I know for me I lived a full seven years with no traces of sugar, wheat, or flour in my body- as well as a whole host of other ingredients. And it took a lot of work because in truth there is hardly a box, can, or jar on a grocery store shelf that does not contain at least one of these ingredients, and usually they have a lot more than one. Now I live mostly craving- free, perhaps because it also takes seven years for the cells in a human body to replace themselves. Considering that the cells in your body literally become addicted to those substances, I probably don't have any addicted cells left.

Most food addiction plans will tell you to stay away from all of those foods permanently. And I don't disagree. Why play with fire after all? Although I will say that during the week of my dad's death I lit the match a bit by eating some onion rings and some ketchup with sugar. In some ways I think it was a last feeble attempt to connect with my dad again. Still, I have had my days of intense cravings- and I don't think I am any too smart to play around in that arena.

So here is where I am left regarding this whole issue. My dad could not avoid his fate. He didn't know about food addiction, or what to do about it. And so he followed an inevitable path to destruction. I have another possibility. I can stick to the foods that make me feel healthy and vibrantly alive and that do not cause cravings. And I can educate others on how to do the same. And I can hope that the grocery stores eventually begin to offer us more options. And by doing this, I can most fully honor my father's love- and his greatness. For he was a truly amazing man, in every way.

Article by: LoreleiF | Total views: 11 | Word Count: 577

About the Author

For more assistance with addictions go to the sites of famed writer activist and Second Hand Addiction Specialist, Lorelei F at fightingfoodcravings and at assistanceful-hints-for-quitting-smoking