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A guide to weight loss from a pretty awesome Black girl... follow me on my journey from 330lbs to personal trainer! 
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Right on time, ABC shared this quiz from the @YaleRuddCenter:
Researchers from Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity say the brain responds to drugs and food similarly. Take this abbreviated survey to see how you compare to the participants in their study of food addiction patterns.
Answer the following questions based on this scale:
0 – Never
1 – Once per month
2 – two to four times per month
3 – two to three per week
4 – four or more times per week
QUESTIONS:
1. I find myself consuming certain foods even though I am no longer hungry. (answer 0-4)
2. I worry about cutting down on certain foods. (answer 0-4)
3. I feel sluggish or fatigued from overeating. (answer 0-4)
4. I have spent time dealing with negative feelings from overeating certain foods, instead of spending time in important activities such as time with family, friends, work or recreation. (answer 0-4)
5. I have had physical withdrawal symptoms such as agitation and anxiety when I cut down on certain foods. (Do NOT include caffeinated drinks: coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, etc.) (answer 0-4)
6. My behavior with respect to food and eating cause me significant distress. (answer 0-4)
7. Issues related to food and eating decrease my ability to function effectively (daily routine, job/school, social or family activities, health difficulties). (answer 0-4)
Answer YES or NO to the following questions.IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS…
8. I kept consuming the same types or amounts of food despite significant emotional and/or physical problems related to my eating. (answer YES or NO)
9. Eating the same amount of food does not reduce negative emotions or increase pleasurable feelings the way it used to. (answer YES or NO)
The Results: Are You Addicted to Food?
Take a look at how you answered each question. According to the Rudd Center, in order to meet the food addiction threshold, participants must answer Question #6 OR #7 on a scale of 3 or 4, AND ALSO answer at least three of the other questions in the following way:
1. I find myself consuming certain foods even though I am no longer hungry. 4
2. I worry about cutting down on certain foods. 4
3. I feel sluggish or fatigued from overeating. 3 OR 4
4. I have spent time dealing with negative feelings from overeating certain foods, instead of spending time in important activities such as time with family, friends, work, or recreation. 3 OR 4
5. I have had physical withdrawal symptoms such as agitation and anxiety when I cut down on certain foods. (Do NOT include caffeinated drinks: coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, etc.) 3 OR 4
6. My behavior with respect to food and eating cause me significant distress. 3 OR 4
7. Issues related to food and eating decrease my ability to function effectively (daily routine, job/school, social or family activities, health difficulties). 3 OR 4
8. I kept consuming the same types or amounts of food despite significant emotional and/or physical problems related to my eating. YES
9. Eating the same amount of food does not reduce negative emotions or increase pleasurable feelings the way it used to. YES
What questions do you think are most meaningful here? Which do you think they could’ve left out? Do you think anything was left out? And, most importantly, how’d you do? I’ve got to admit, I was relatively pleased with my own answers here – while I had my fair share of “nevers,” I’m looking forward to adding a lot more to the list. What about you?
Ehh, I’m all about food addiction (planning on getting my PhD in related research) but I think they are oversimplifying it here. My personal belief (although my personal beliefs cannot be completely separated from research based science) is that addiction (including food, alcohol, exercise, whatever) is a gradient. There are SERIOUS addicts, and then there are the rest of us. That doesn’t mean we don’t struggle with addictive thoughts & behaviors. My inclination is to label any “need” that conflicts with well balanced logic as an addiction, even if it’s not all consuming.
That’s the same thing I said – regarding oversimplification. I think there’s a large amount of gray area where the majority of us fall, but considering how they went to the extremes, I’m still pleased with where I stand.
On that note, this:
“My inclination is to label any “need” that conflicts with well balanced logic as an addiction, even if it’s not all consuming.”
is the cornerstone of my thoughts on food addiction. If, in the face of undeniable evidence, you still cannot make what is clearly the best choice? That’s a food addiction. Do you have any resources that can help me dig deeper on that?
i also take issue with this a little…i know that i am not addicted to food but i took the quiz just for fun. as someone who is “recovering” from years of restrictive eating/obsessive dieting i feel more guilty more often about overeating…more so than other people would. so i put 4′s for 1. and 2… then again i didn’t put 3 or 4 for #6. or 7., so the quiz gave an accurate result in the end. LOL. whatever!
I feel like I am addicted to food at times. This test is in line with that. I guess the question now is what do I do about it???