Reaching over for that next slice of pizza, I felt an imaginary tap on my shoulder. I see another, slimmer me simply looking down with disgust as I slowly moved the cheesy goodness into my mouth. At that point in time, I’ve never felt more self-conscious about my weight than ever before. I can admit that I do feel ashamed of being fat. Deep down I know that it’s not my desirable way of living.
Have you ever wondered, “How did I even get to this mess?”. Perhaps you are just as clueless as I was on how far we’ve come to depend on fast and highly-processed food for our needy pleasure. Perhaps you too are beating yourself up for being “weak willed”. Or how easily you fell into the “temptation trap” of fatty foods.
I hope I’m making you feel a tad bit uncomfortable with these relatable scenarios. I mean no harm believe me. My intention is to get you to see the reasons why obesity is rampant today. I want you to be aware of what’s going on in your head whenever you feel like grabbing another snack.
After this read, hopefully you’ll come off feeling less ashamed about being slightly on the chubby side. Most importantly, you’ll develop a healthy outlook on weight loss. To achieve the health goals you desire without feeling guilty or pressured.
It’s All in the Biology
First of all, we need to understand what happens the moment these fast food or highly-processed food enters our body. The combination of salt, sugar, and fat contents in those food triggers an extreme level of sensory pleasure in your mouth or better known as the bliss point. Hormonally, your body releases a huge surge of endorphins and dopamine which is what causes the extreme sensory pleasure. In comparison, this sense of euphoria or excitement resembles closely to that of a thrilling amusement park rollercoaster ride! Thanks to this, our body has biologically evolved to have a primal desire to seek for these 3 food components.
To wrap our heads around this, we’ll have to go way back to caveman times. Back then, these foods are important sources of energy but are very scarce in the wild. Whenever our ancestors got the chance to eat it, their bodies wants as much of it as possible as they won’t know when the next batch of supply will come again. This is the other reason for the release of the two hormones. They have one key function which is to promote behavior repetition. When we feel the surge of pleasure, we are more likely to repeat the action that created that sense of pleasure. Behavioral psychologist calls this operant conditioning, a powerful learning process that quite literally enabled the survival of human kind.
Engineering Addiction
Unfortunately, as our civilization evolves, our primal tendencies still remained. In a world of abundant resources for salty, sugary and fatty foods, it has never been easier to get them cheaply and in substantial portions. Regularly eating fast food gradually makes it difficult to accept healthy foods like fruits and vegetables again. Hence, further reinforcing the operant conditioning set in place. This phenomenon is so strong that when tested with rats, some would rather starve themselves waiting for the fast food. In other words, our brains have been biologically hardwired to crave these fast food. This makes us want to eat more and more and more of it.
As corporations become smarter in engineering more addictive compounds and promoting extravagant adverts, so does the detrimental impact on the consuming masses. Think back to what you’ve read so far, there are other better ways that you can trigger those hormonal releases. Put the food down and walk away!
The Truth on Comfort Eating
Other than the feel good hormones, we do have another major culprit living in our heads. One that does a lot of mental gymnastics to justify constant eating to handle our daily stresses. That is the influence of growing mental health problems due to workplace stress in relation to obesity.
In the 21st century, there are more individuals than ever reporting being stressed. Particularly in the workplace where most would spend the bulk of their time. Here are a few stats to kick things off:
- According to The Regus Group, stress levels related to work are continuing to rise with about 60% of workers in major global economies experiencing an increase in workplace stress.
- The World Health Organization reported that depression from the workplace is among the leading causes of disabilities worldwide.
- In Brunei, the two mental health issues identified are excessive stress and anxiety as reported by Siti Syamsiah binti Jumaat, a Committee member of the Health Initiative and Drive.
So we have established that, clearly, workplace stress is a prevalent issue at the moment, but what does this have to do with being fat? Well there seem to be a strong relationship between chronic stress and being overweight or obese.
Think about it, a common way in which most people cope with stresses is to comfort eat. This involves using the pleasure we get from eating foods high in fat, sugar and calories to relax ourselves. Our body isn’t actually starving for food, but craving the hormonal release that is brought about from eating. This is similar to those who chose exercise as a means of stress relieving. The body doesn’t care the means of which the pleasure is triggered, just that it is triggered for its own benefit. This in-turn leads to fat gains when not controlled properly.
As I gained weight, people around me would start to take notice and make uncomfortable comments. For a while then, this leads to more stress and more comfort eating. I see it as a coping mechanism – an unhealthy one no less. Breaking out of it does require effort but it’s all worthwhile in the end.
Where Does That Leave Us Then?
To begin dealing with a problem, you must first understand it. Here’re today’s takeaways for you to digest.
You are not entirely to blame for your size and weight
Sometimes, it’s simply the combination of societal pressure, natural evolution, and a lack of available information for healthy sustainable fat loss. So stop beating yourselves and take a step back to see the bigger picture. Wallowing in misery and self-pity won’t get you anywhere!
What’s done is done. Let’s move on with positivity
With new knowledge and methodologies comes ways to be more efficient at losing fat. Moving forward, I hope that you choose to lose fats not because you feel pressured but because you love yourself. Let’s dream of a day you are out there with your loved ones, running into your late 80s. So stay safe and stay healthy!