Imagine if eating were as simple as, say, refueling your car. You’d fill up only when an indicator nudged towards empty, you couldn’t possibly overdo it or else your tank would overflow, and you’d never, ever dream of using it as a treat.
Instead, for many of us, eating is anything but straightforward. What starts out as a biological necessity quickly gets entangled with different emotions, ideas, memories and rituals. Food takes on all kinds of meanings — as solace, punishment, appeasement, celebration, obligation – and depending on the day and our mood, we may end up overeating, undereating or eating unwisely. It’s time for us to rethink our relationship with food.
One small step on how to do this
Try not to use food as a reward or a punishment.
It’s not surprising that we do this. After all, as children, we quickly learn that rejoicing and parties come with cake sweets and treats. Christmas means indulgence. A lot of our social events are eating out with friends. But one of the great things about being an adult is, we can establish our own associations. By all means, let’s continue to mark our birthdays with cake - or with fresh fruit a stew or a curry, if that’s what you prefer. Or, celebrate in ways that have nothing to do with eating. You can set your own rules now.
Try it for yourself..
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