We all experience cravings once in a while and we all overeat on occasion. We are generally aware of what we are doing, sometimes regret it afterwards, but generally recognize it as atypical behaviour, something that is not likely to be repeated too often. What would happen, however, if this behaviour became more frequent, if cravings became harder to ignore and overeating became the norm rather than the exception? What would happen if eating became the focus of most activity to the detriment of social functioning and began to cause harm to your health? And what if withdrawal from food caused anxiety, irritability and altered mood? When does craving become addiction? The past decade has seen the diagnosis of “Food Addiction” (FA) propelled from lay literature conjecture to the front page of esteemed scientific publications, a move fuelled by research into the alarming rise in obesity. It fell just short of recognition in the DSM-V released earlier this year, but not without substantial lobbying and controversy. Continue reading →