Why do we eat?

It seems such a simple question, doesn’t it? We eat to live and if we didn’t eat we would die. A simple answer to a simple question.

And yet, with the “epidemic” of obesity all over the Western world, simple answers don’t seem to apply any more, so let’s take a brief look at some of the reasons people eat.

Part I - Social Eating

From the first “let’s meet up for coffee” to the romantic dinner for two, relationships are built on social eating. The eating itself is compliment to the physical pleasure of being in a new or established relationship and associated in the mind with enjoyment and sensual stimulation. Small wonder that when things go wrong, we strive to reconnect with the sensations we remember from when things were going well.

Business, too, often takes place in an environment where food is available – the working breakfast, lunch, dinner; client entertaining and dinner with the boss either at home or in a restaurant. This situation is more stress than pleasure, with food as a counterpoint to the pressure of closing the deal.

Too many business meals and the weight piles on – have you noticed how much weight many successful politicians carry around with them? And how quickly that happens? Too much of a good thing tends to show up around the waist in very short order.

Family mealtimes are often the only time that the whole family is together – often less than once a week. That gathering of the family brings back memories of childhood when the parent was always available and mealtimes were, safe, loving, filled with laughter and togetherness. A special pleasure.

Alternatively, family mealtimes may have been a traumatic time – being forced to eat or times when a child could not help but be noticed by an abusive parent, for example – all associated subconsciously with food. Later on food becomes the only part of the abusive relationship that is under individual control … or the part that is hopelessly out of control.

More prosaically, food preparation is something that we have all, to an extent, become separated from. With most homes needing two incomes to maintain, there is very little time for cooking – what might once have been started at midday in order to present in the evening now has only 15-20 minutes associated with preparation and cooking time.

We turn to supermarket prepared and processed food to help assuage what can often be guilt about evening meals that at least look as if they might actually be food – food that someone at least has put some effort into. Unfortunately, most processed food has trans and hydrogenated fats as significant parts of the ingredients and far more salt and sugar than you would imagine simply by tasting it. Added to which, the body never really feels satisfied by that, so then it’s time to fill up with sweets and biscuits, both of which are also full of fat, salt and sugar.

Help from an EFT Practitioner

From the above, it becomes obvious that not everyone eats for the same reason or has the same associations with food. Which is why some diets work for some people and some don’t work for anyone!

When we use EFT for weight loss, what we are zeroing in on is our own individual events leading to our current relationships with food. Often, when we are using EFT by ourselves, we are unable to see our own woods because we get bogged down in our obscuring global trees.

EFT practitioners are trained to help – look for AAMET Qualified or Gary Craig Certified practitioners and ask to speak to one or two current or past clients to get a feel for how effective your prospective practitioner is. Many practitioners offer a free 15 minute phone or in person initial consultation. Others, like myself, offer to return the fee if they are unable to help.

Global Setup Phrases to Try


Even though mealtimes are always a battle, I deeply and completely love and accept myself

Even though food is my only way of soothing my sadness, I deeply and completely love and accept myself

Even though I have to eat to be sociable – I can’t say no, I deeply and completely love and accept myself

Even though I have this hunger and I don’t know where it came from, I deeply and completely love and accept myself

Parts II, III, IV and V of this series will be published in following weeks.