In the article, “Food as a pacifier” from Unimed, it discusses how our childhood plays a significant role in our relationship with food as an adult. As a clinical social worker, many patients have expressed to met how their current cravings almost always were established in their childhood. For example, many of my patients discuss how rice was a stable food in their childhood, and often was a part of celebratory, and everyday meals, and this is something that they now crave as an adult. I discuss with them the importance of identifying how that relationship was created during their childhood, and how to practice being more aware of the craving as an adult. It is important as these cravings come up, to process them before going to grab them. If we process our thoughts, we are more likely to not give in to the craving!

Not only are cravings often established in childhood, but our emotional attachment to certain foods is as well. Many patients have expressed that their parents “used food as a pacifier” and as a distraction. Also, patients have explained that food was used to provide comfort and love in times of financial or family stress. These childhood traits often form harmful coping skills as a child and are often the hardest habits to break. It is so important to identify how you were conditioned as a child to view food, and how it overflows into adulthood. Instead of looking for comfort and love within food, we must start to work on establishing a healthier alternative. Although this takes great dedication, consistency, and time, it can be done.

We must be conscious of our psychological make up in order to change our behaviors in a positive manner!

To read more from the article “Food as a Pacifier”, please visit the following link:

https://www.unimedliving.com/diet-and-weight-loss/how-to-lose-weight/emotional-eating/food-as-a-pacifier.html#:~:text=Any%20discomfort%20is%20fed%20with,learning%20this%20effect%20from%20birth