Ellie:
> > I think binge
> > eating is but one symptom of the food addiction and goes as far back in
> > history as we can find an overweight person. I doubt if it is more
> > common among instinctos or fruitarians than among the general
> > population. All of the addictions are based on the original addiction to
> > people called co-dependency. The addictions to food, alcohol, etc, are
> > tips of the iceberg. People who go to self help programs like OA usually
> > control their food issues but transfer their addiction to people. Unless
> > they get into recovery for co-depedency they remain addicted to people
> > and do not really recover. I cannot provide statistics for this
> > conclusion because the self-help programs are anonymous, but I have seen
> > this personally in myself and in hundreds, perhaps thousands, of others.

Jean-Louis:
> The author of the book I read disagrees with the conception of bingeing
> as an addiction, despite the obvious similarities between them. His arguments
> are:
>  1) There is no evidence that people who are addicted (to alcohol, for instance)
> are more prone to bingeing than people who suffer from another psychological
> problem.
>  2) There is apparently no phenomenon of "symptom substitution", i.e. those
> who are cured from food bingeing don't develop a new addiction [so, it
> contradicts what you are saying???]

As a recovering alcoholic and binger on food, I have been to thousands of
twelve step meetings. Most alcoholics have more than one addiction, some
binge on food, others gamble, others are compulsive shoppers. Many put
down alcohol in AA and pick up other addictions, like food. All addicts
are co-dependent, ie addicted to people, and unless they get into
recovery for co-dependency they remain addicted to something, even if it
is to the people at the meetings they attend. As I said, there are no
scientific studies to support this conclusion, but any one who is in
recovery from these additions will understand these cross-addictions.


>  3) Binge eaters try hard, without success, to avoid the behavior, whereas
> alcoholics don't necessarily.

Ask any recovering alcoholic how hard he/she tried to stop.

> As for instinctos, I think that bingeing is the problem #1. The week-end I
> went to Montrame, it was one of the FAQs, and Burger gave the usual (and
> unsatisfactory) explanations: it's due to social conditioning, you should eat
> food from Orkos which will give you clearer stops while giving more
> satisfaction, etc. Personally, before going instincto, I did have occasional
> binges (on cookies or chocolate), but it never reached the proportions of the
> first months of instincto. And now, despite having a low- or mid-carb
> diet and being busy all day, I still haven't fully recovered [but I think I am
> on the way].

 Doesn't sound like you have a problem, and I find eating only live foods is a good way for me to
avoid foods that would set up cravings.

My best, Ellie