S. B. Feldman wrote:
> Some are interested in what to eat and some what not to eat This list
concerns paleo eating, for the most part, whatever that is. To look at eating
as an addictive behaviour is a narrower rather than a wider perspective.

I mentioned this in the context of so many people asking why they were eating
a paleo diet and still not losing weight.  There is only one answer to this
question: they must be eating more than their bodies needs for fuel.  Why
does this happen so often to humans?  It very rarely happens to any other
species on earth.  The only exception I can think of is domesticated dogs and
cats, and even this is less common than fat humans.

The body--including the human body--has a fantastic inborn barometer that
says exact what to eat and how much, but this quiet inner voice is drowned
out by what we learn--intellectually and culturally--as we move through our
lives.  As I said in my first message on this topic, I believe there are two
main reasons that humans tend to get fat.  One is unstable blood sugar
(reactive hypoglycemia), which is generally caused by excessive intake of
carbohydrates (especially grains and starchy vegetables).  The other is
eating when one isn't hungry.  This is, by definition, "compulsive eating".
"Compulsive eating" is defined as eating in the absence of physical hunger.
This includes initiating the intake of food in the absence of physical
hunger, or continuing to eat beyond satiation.

Many people on this list are overweight and want to lose weight--there have
been many posts about it.  There have also been quite a few posts
specifically about the tendency of WOMEN to gain weight on a paleo diet more
than men.  I believe this is because women have a greater tendency (due to
cultural pressures) to eat compulsively than do men, and a diet--any
diet--can trigger the problem.  So I posted some messages about this.

I think a discussion of compulsive eating is quite relevant to this list.
Certainly, eating in the absence of physical hunger was probably not part of
our paleolithic past.  And it is certainly a powerful factor in how we eat
today.  So it's another very relevant aspect to consider.

     - Sheryl