I Am Afraid of Food—Can You Help Me?

Is white flour bad for you? Is sugar bad for you? Are carbs bad for you? Is salt bad for you? Is fat bad for you? Is junk food bad for you? Is sitting on the couch bad for you?

I am asked these questions every day by my patients. People ask these questions because they need reassurance that they won’t become unhealthy or gain weight. My standard answer is no, nothing is bad for you (unless it is moldy, past date, or banned by the FDA). Everything is OK in moderation. Genetics is turning out to be the most important factor when it comes to health risk and body size. For skeptical patients, we review the research and my personal and clinical experience. The next step is to gradually work on overcoming these fears by “exposure therapy” to learn the truth. A food exposure assignment might be to eat a meal at a fast food restaurant and see that nothing bad happens. Another assignment might be to spend a quiet afternoon reading instead of going to the gym. These assignments prove that nothing bad happens and over time, fear subsides.

There are plenty of things to be of afraid (e.g., hurricanes, typhoons, global warming, war, famine), but food isn’t one of them. Facing your food fears will free of your mind to focus on more important things.

Nutritionist Marcia Herrin and Nancy Matsumoto, co-authors of The Parent’s Guide to Eating Disorders, Gūrze Books, Marcia is also author of the recently published Nutrition Counseling in the Treatment of Eating Disorders (Routledge, 2013).

Copyrighted by Marcia Herrin and Nancy Matsumoto.