Most substance addictions greatly impact our diet. Take alcohol addiction, for example; many alcoholics are initially prone to gaining weight in the early stages of their addiction due to the fact that they obtain almost half (1000-1500) of their recommended calorie intake from alcohol and will then eat around 2000 calories (of food) on top of this. This causes them to have a surplus of calories and thus gain weight quickly. However, as alcoholism becomes more prominent, the effects are reversed; the alcoholic is likely to have a reduced appetite and will likely drop weight rapidly.
Unfortunately, many alcoholics get to the point where alcohol is the only substance consumed on a regular basis. Not only does that make it impossible to maintain a healthy body weight, but it also strips a person of the necessary vitamins and nutrients that the body needs to maintain good quality health.
Moreover, when mental illnesses, like addiction, interfere with our eating habits, we can sometimes:
- Forget to eat
- Have no cravings for food or interest in eating
- Eat at unhealthy times, such as in the middle of the night
- Show an disinterest in food shopping or cooking (due to depression or lethargy), so instead opt for quick and easy junk foods that lack essential nutrients
- Refuse to eat as some substance addictions can make eating uncomfortable. For example, opiates often cause gastrointestinal pain, making it difficult for a person to eat
- Feeling nauseous at the thought of food. For example, sedative addiction can suppress the appetite to the point where food becomes unappealing
- Unable to buy food. Some people with addiction go hungry because they have spent all their money on obtaining the source of their addiction and have no money left to eat
- Can make us binge eat (causing us to feel lethargy and deflated)
