Maybe you’ve been hearing social media chatter about “food noise” and realized you struggle with this too—and now you want to know how to stop thinking about food.
Or perhaps you’ve struggled with an eating disorder or disordered eating for many years and are ready to open up some energy and brain space for non-food related thinking.
Either way, we have to come to terms with the fact that food is integral to the human experience. It offers the sustenance we need to stay alive and the pleasure we crave to satisfy our taste buds. It’s normal to think about food on a daily basis, like when our stomachs rumble at lunchtime or we see our favorite snacks at the grocery store.
If your thoughts about food are constant and all-consuming, a more serious issue could be to blame. Let’s explore the connection between caloric restriction and obsessive food thoughts, plus how to heal your relationship with food overall.
Why Obsessive Food Thoughts Occur
If you’re in the habit of skipping meals or controlling portion sizes, these restrictive tendencies can alter how you perceive food biologically speaking, leading to obsessive food thoughts. This happens for two reasons:
- Frequent caloric restriction throws off the body’s natural hunger and fullness cues, making it difficult to satiate yourself. This could lead to anxious or obsessive food thoughts because your body is experiencing physical hunger. The food thoughts are your body’s way of communicating with you.
- Restriction leads to cravings and this cycle continues the more you don’t give your body what it’s craving. So, what might have started as a simple diet shift can turn into constant food noise because you’re chronically mentally and physically restricting yourself. In addition to obsessive thoughts about food, restriction can also lead to other behaviors like emotional eating, overeating or binge eating, and food anxiety.
Science tells us this is true as well. A study in the Nutrients Journal found a correlation between food restriction and constant rumination (the impulse to dwell on harmful or intrusive thoughts). The researchers also noticed that this rumination increases the risk of maladaptive eating habits like disordered eating behaviors and even diagnosable eating disorders.
Interestingly, there’s a hormonal component to obsessive food thoughts as well. A team of researchers at the Harvard Medical School measured ghrelin levels (a hormone that stimulates appetite, also called the “hunger hormone”) in young women with anorexia, and observed that chronic restricting led to an increase in ghrelin. This hormonal spike caused the women to feel persistent hunger without any relief or satisfaction.
No matter the cause, constant thoughts of food can be exhausting and frustrating.
Obsessive Food Thoughts vs. Food Noise
You might be familiar with the concept of “food noise” (it generates nearly two billion views on TikTok, after all). But is this the same as constantly having to think about food because you don’t consume enough of it?
There is some overlap. According to the Nutrients Journal, “food noise” is a colloquial term for food-centric ruminations such as planning your next meal while eating your current one or habitually checking restaurant menus or delivery platforms.
However, there’s a crucial difference. Obsessive food thoughts are the result of deprivation and restriction and often are paired with other disordered behaviors or eating patterns. In other words, you’re not just thinking about your next meal or that you’re suddenly craving ice cream. Instead, you:
- Fixate on the craving and the perceived ramifications of a food choice
- Punish yourself for a craving
- Abstain from meals altogether
What’s worse, this avoidance can cause severe malnutrition, weight-related insecurities, and social anxieties such as a fear of eating in public, the Journal of Eating Disorders reports.
Learn more in our blog post, What is Food Noise and How to Silence It.
Obsessive Food Thoughts vs. Binge Eating
These two things, while they might seem similar, are very different. Obsessive food thoughts and binge eating are related but distinct experiences, both of which can impact a person’s relationship with food and eating behaviors. Obsessive food thoughts refer to a preoccupation with food that occupies your mind in a way that can feel intrusive or overwhelming.
While not always accompanied by actual overeating, obsessive food thoughts can lead to unhealthy behaviors, including restrictive eating, emotional eating, or anxiety around food. People who experience these thoughts may not always act on them but find them distressing.
Binge eating, on the other hand, involves the act of consuming large quantities of food in a short period, often to the point of discomfort. Binge eating is often a coping mechanism for dealing with emotional issues. Unlike bulimia, binge eating is not followed by compensatory behaviors like purging, fasting, or excessive exercise.
If obsessive food thoughts or binge eating behaviors become frequent or distressing, they could be signs of a more serious eating disorder (such as binge eating disorder or another form of disordered eating), and professional help from a therapist, dietitian, or doctor may be beneficial.
How to Stop Thinking About Food Obsessively (Can You?)
The short answer is: yes. The long answer is that this can be hard to do, but it’s far from impossible. The simplest solution to stop obsessive food thoughts is to stop restricting your caloric intake. When I say simple, I don’t mean easy. When you have a difficult relationship with food, that’s much easier said than actually done.
Not only are there likely deeper issues that are driving the underlying behaviors, which is leading to the rumination—but restriction impedes hunger and fullness cues. This means a simple strategy that’s popular on social media like mindful eating, while well-intentioned, isn’t always enough. You might also have to re-learn what it means to nourish yourself at reliable intervals, understand the root of your food cravings and food guilt, and more.
If you’re ready for a change, here are some strategies to use as a starting point.
Ask for Professional Mental Health Support
I’m starting with this strategy because if you’re at the point where you can’t stop thinking about food, are actively restricting, and potentially engaging in other disordered behaviors, professional support is the best way to start healing. This work can be challenging, and it can be difficult to uncover what’s really happening by yourself. At Kindful Body we support patients in California. If that’s you, please book a free consult now. If not, here are a few directories to find a mental health professional:
Try Intuitive Eating
Intuitive eating is not a magic bullet and it’s not right for everyone, especially if you are struggling with an eating disorder. Still, it can be a great foundation to rediscover your hunger cues and connect with your ability to nurture your body through food. Better understand what this concept is by learning the 10 Principles of Intuitive Eating. You can also buy the book, Intuitive Eating.
Slowly Open Your Diet Back Up
Ultimately eating more calories and allowing yourself to eat the foods you’ve restricted is the best way to stop the food noise. One way to do that on your own is to slowly add new or once-restricted foods back into your diet, while also increasing your caloric intake. I emphasize slow because this gives your mind and body a chance to adjust, get tuned back in, and shift old beliefs that you’ve likely held for a very long time.
Stop the Cycle Obsessive Food Thoughts with Kindful Body
As beneficial as a tool like intuitive eating can be, sometimes you need a more structured plan to silence those persistent food thoughts. At Kindful Body, we aim to make it simple to find the right treatment option and a therapist that best fits your needs and unique personality. Book your free 15-minute consultation and we’ll match you with a licensed, culturally sensitive, weight inclusive therapist who can guide you in the healing process with interventions tailored to your unique, specific journey.
Interested in learning more about Kindful Body? Visit our website, read our blog or follow us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
