Poor nutrition is one of the great problems of the 21st century. Many people ask themselves “why do I feel bad when I eat
”. Well, there are many reasons and we are going to classify them into two groups: physical discomfort and psychological discomfort.
In the article we will make special emphasis on cases where the person feels bad for psychological reasons.
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When I eat I feel bad (psychologically)
Next we are going to analyze the main causes that can make a person feel bad when eating. Either before (when you think about eating), during (while you eat) or after you have eaten.
As you can see, emotions (sometimes not conscious) form the basis that answers the question: Why do I feel bad when I eat? 1. Guilt When a person feels that their body is not at the ideal weight (whatever whether it is this weight and whether it is true or not) the feeling of guilt may appear.
This feeling usually appears after eating and by its very nature, it can make the person feel bad, since it is an unpleasant emotion .
In any case, guilt can appear in specific cases even before having eaten with the simple fact of thinking about eating. It could also appear during eating, but again, it is less frequent.
On the other hand, it is very common for guilt to appear in people with an eating disorder after eating, both in people with anorexia and in people suffering from bulimia; since in both cases the action of eating is associated with something negative that they must avoid or at least control. 2. Shame
Again we have an emotion that can raise the big question: why do I feel bad when I eat?
Like guilt (and many other emotions, of course), shame can make a person feel bad. As a general rule, it is usually related to the action of eating and the presence of third parties .
In other words, we can say that this emotion is especially strong when the person who feels it perceives food intake as something negative and feels that others can judge them for it.
This type of discomfort is very common in people who are overweight or who suffered from it in the past and who are or have been criticized for it. 2.1. Shame, fear and loss of control
The feeling of shame is especially strong in people who have experienced orthey are afraid of experiencing moments of loss of control in front of food.
When one of these episodes occurs (if it does), the person may eat large amounts of food without any control. Later, the guilt will be assured and the shame too, especially if someone sees or discovers the binge. 3. Failure (feeling of)
The feeling of failure generally appears when a person fails to achieve a goal that had been proposed (either short or long term).
The control of food has become for many, in recent decades, a form of self-improvement; as if it were a form of self-control.
This can be positive as long as it does not result in an eating behavior disorder (such as orthorexia, anorexia, bulimia, etc.), since, as we all know, a good diet is the foundation of health and well-being.
There is a group of particular cases that require a prominent mention: elite athletes . These usually set strict goals (sometimes unattainable) as far as food (restrictive, almost always) is concerned.
If these goals are not achieved, the feeling of failure may appear, making the person feel bad when eating. 4. Fear
This case is much rarer than the previous ones and only appears on isolated occasions. Again, we explain the discomfort before food with an emotion. In this case, fear.
The fear of eating (before, during or after) can appear when the person associates the action of eating with something potentially harmful to himself . For example, it can appear when after eating a certain food, you discover that it is harmful to health (whether or not it is true).
There are extreme cases where there is a psychological disorder behind. Some examples are people who are afraid of choking and dying when eating (phagophobia) or people with hypochondriacal traits who associate a meal with possible symptoms, coming to believe that a particular food can be harmful or deadly.
Finally comment that fear also appears in people who have suffered, suffer or fear binge eating with loss of control.
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When I eat I feel bad (physically)
After describing the main psychological reasons that explain why when someone eats they can feel bad, we proceed to explain the main causes of physical discomfort. 1. Food in poor condition
The vast majority of the time, food in poor condition is what explains the discomfort and physical pain after ingestion.
Likewise, almost all spoiled foods can be identified by having an unpleasant or different odor from the common one, or by presenting a different color.
Evolutionarily, the human being has developed mechanisms for the detection of spoiled food (especially taste and smell). Fortunately, even if these mechanisms fail, the vast majority of the time eating spoiled food by accident is not a cause for alarm (although it will depend on the type of food and the amount eaten).
If after eating you feel very ill or suspect that you have eaten some food in poor condition, do not hesitate to go to the doctor if you see it necessary. 2. Allergies
A large part of the world population has allergies to some food or substance. It is also not surprising that this allergy goes unnoticed during medical examinations or that for whatever reason it has not manifested itself until adult life (for example).
This frequently causes people to discover their allergies by coming into contact with those elements that cause them, at home, in a restaurant or anywhere else.
There are general symptoms that appear in a large number of cases, they are: digestive problems, respiratory problems, swelling, redness, skin problems such as rashes and itching.
We must also bear in mind that there are different degrees of allergies . The mildest cases can cause occasional discomfort (in the form of different symptoms depending on the food and the person). In severe cases, it can even lead to death. 3. Intolerance
Being able to cause symptoms similar to those of allergies, intolerance is harmful and annoying but in a less aggressive way.
Foods that generate intolerance can make us ask “why when I eat do I feel bad
” more often, because in many cases they generate diffuse symptoms such as physical exhaustion that can be difficult to associate with food.
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