by Sofia Moreau

Do you find yourself concealing your dietary habits out of fear or embarrassment? Could this concealing habit be harming your relationship with food? Read on to uncover ways to break away from such restrictive patterns and foster a healthier bond with the sustenance that fuels us.

Does dining in privacy or secret resonate with you? Do you often find yourself eating healthy around others but indulging the moment you’re alone? This dual behavior with food may be indicative of a problematic relationship with eating. The key to identifying this issue lies in your emotional response if someone were to discover your clandestine meals.

Are You an Unconscious Eater?

Many of us do lose track of what we consume, particularly when we’re not actively trying to manage our weight. However, if your goal is to cultivate healthier dietary habits, maintaining a food diary can be instrumental in keeping tabs on your daily intake.

Research reveals that many overweight individuals often don’t recall their entire consumption. Some even believe they’re eating sufficiently when, in reality, they’re exceeding their dietary needs. Stress or emotional struggles related to weight loss further blur our ability to remember every bite, leading us into a zone of foggy eating.

Breaking the Cycle of Secret Eating

Secretive eating spawns an isolating loop, leaving individuals feeling alienated. Besides causing you embarrassment, it can also instill fear of being noticed, prompting you to harbor a slew of reasons to keep people at bay. If you’re experiencing such emotions, it might be the right time to reassess your bond with food.

People often resort to secret eating due to fear. This fear is typically associated with judgment from others or self, leading to feelings of guilt and a filter of shame layered over everything. Unfortunately, shame undermines one’s ability to regulate oneself, making it harder to control the very behavior you wish to change.

Embracing a Healthier Relationship with Food

Overcoming shame, quitting secret eating habits, and regaining charge of your dietary pattern begins with acknowledging your deep-rooted feelings. Despite it being painful, understanding and accepting these emotions is the first step towards healthier eating. This may require a quiet introspection to recall times when you felt guilt, inadequacy, or humiliation related to food and eating, but remember to be objective and kind to yourself during this process.

Treating yourself with kindness and understanding, as you would a friend with similar concerns, is of utmost importance. If self-judgment and guilt had the power to correct your eating patterns, it would have done so by now. Instead, it only contributes to stress and compels you to further secrecy. Acknowledge yourself as a human, complete with strengths and vulnerabilities, and be gentle with yourself.

Overcoming Food Prejudice

Moralizing food, labeling them as ‘sinful’ or ‘naughty’, can foster a negative relationship with eating habits. Restricting yourself based on such categorization may lead to feelings of guilt and continue the cycle of secret eating.

Sharing your struggles with eating can be an effective antidote to such shame. However, it is important to choose the right platform or group, keeping in mind the need to avoid criticism or judgment. Associating with those who share similar struggles, like within a weight-management group, can make you feel less alone and more understood. Such support systems can build a space of compassion, mutual admiration and understanding.

Breaking free from the chains of secret eating and fostering a healthier relationship with food is an important journey to embark on. Teach yourself to be good to you, and success is guaranteed.

Related: Exercising but failing to lose weight? Here’s why.

nutrition, overeating, secret eating, guilt, food relationship, emotional eating, food diary, shame, self-judgment, support groups, breaking eating habits, weight management