Chocolate, Cheese, Meat, Sugar: Physically Addictive FoodsPosted Oct 25 2008 4:48pm I recently read Bronwyn's Scheigardt's post on sugar and I couldn't agree more with her. I just don't eat it anymore. I seldom crave it. If I do, I have a piece of fruit or a simple fruit-sweetened dessert. Is this a miracle coming from someone whose favorite food (and most often eaten food) from age 15 to 40 was sugar? No ... not really. I'll tell you why.
From a macrobiotic perspective of yin and yang ... the more 'yang' or contracted foods eaten — salt, animal protein like meat, chicken and hard dairy, or baked dry foods — the more the opposite 'yin' or expansive foods are craved. Guess what the yin foods are? Yes, you guessed it, SUGAR in all of its many forms, from candy to sodas, soft dairy products like milk and ice cream, coffee, alcohol and drugs ... to name a few. Do you get the picture? It's actually quite simple.
So, whole grains (such as brown rice), vegetables and beans are in the middle of this yin-yang spectrum. I picture it as a ruler with yin on one side and yang on the other. Whole grains, vegetables and beans are considered more balanced and are in the middle of the ruler. If you eat more of these you won't have as much craving for the opposite end of the spectrum foods. You'll stay more balanced and not teeter-totter between the meat-sugar or salt-sugar extremes.
I've added this video from Dr. Neal Barnard, president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, about addictive foods to give you even more of an idea about the science behind "addictive" foods. (It's 40 minutes long, but well worth it.)
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3214100593069532942# http://stanford.wellsphere.com/healthy-eating-article/chocolate-cheese-meat-sugar-physically-addictive-foods/457549