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Addiction and Food Don’t Always Go Hand-in-Hand, But They Are Often Connected.
- Why?
- Because you need to eat well to feel well!
When a person is suffering from addiction, they need addiction treatment, and change their eating habit, rather than feeding themselves with healthy food, they can only think of feeling their addiction.
As far as we know, that’s not a healthy nutrition choice!
This is why a person suffering from addiction needs to go through severe diet changes in the addiction rehab center. They may also struggle with finding insurance after a DUI depending on the results of their addiction.
How Substance Abuse Disrupts Nutrition
The use, abuse, and misuse of alcoholic beverages, illicit drugs, and prescribed drugs may create any health risk. And out of them all, of course, the most obvious is adduction.
Addiction is the behavioral trait where a person shows the sight of continuing doing something even though they have far surpassed their limit. This resulted in a fatal overdose. Apart from addiction, another most prominent health risk is malnutrition.
Food is fuel for the body. When the body gets accustomed to addiction, it replaces food with the element of addiction. This takes away all the nutrients from the body.
When individuals abuse elements of addiction, they:
- Avoid eating healthy food.
- Replace eating with taking addiction elements.
- Loss of nutrition through vomiting and diarrhea.
- The body can’t absorb the nutrients because of damaged guts.
- Low on energy.
When the body has undergone changes and has become dependent on an addictive element, it is dangerous to reintroduce nutrition to the body instantly. This is where Ascendant provides a detox service in New Jersey. They are professional at dealing with such scenarios.
Role Of Nutrition During Rehab
Addiction recovery might seem like a simple process. However, that is not the case. Rehab from the Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) includes several phases.
- Abstinence.
- Medical detoxification.
- Behavioral therapy.
- Peer support group.
- 12 step treatment program.
- After-care program.
Even that might not be enough to cure the addiction. You have to just keep trying your best your whole life to stay sober.
After the addiction recovery treatment program is over, you might think that the treatment is over. However, this is where the real treatment begins.
When you enter a sober life, you might encounter several things that might trigger a relapse. This is where you need to have the right mental fortitude to control your cravings and move on with your sober life.
Experts believe that to control your behavior and urges to start addiction again; you need to keep your physical and mental condition in the best shape.
Healthy food becomes the supportive pillar for an effective, fast recovery. This is how eating healthy can help you during the addiction recovery process.
- Improved sleep.
- Stronger immune system.
- Better digestion.
- More balanced mood.
- Reduced depression and anxiety.
- Increase self-esteem.
- Recharge your energy.
When the body doesn’t have the right nutrients to fuel itself, everybody function suffers. Having a balanced diet can ensure your body is getting all the nutrients.
Foods That Helps Your Body Heal
After deciding on quitting an addiction, don’t justify yourself eating fast food like pizzas, burgers, sugary snacks, and sodas. While fast foods might be considered a lesser evil than the two, it is still evil that damages your body.
Eating junk food will only further deteriorate your health and make it harder for you to recover. In addition, you must also need to be mindful of the fact that replacing addiction with junk food will not change anything. Rather you might fall victim to an eating disorder.
Considering how healthy food is the core part of having a good mood, healthy mind, and body, we have listed down a list of foods that will hasten your recovery process.
1. Poultry & Fish
When people abuse drugs, they might prevent their body from producing tyrosine – an amino acid that synthesizes protein. Tyrosine plays a crucial part in the production of dopamine.
Lack of dopamine might result in an imbalance in mood swings. However, with the amino acid in your diet, your body can naturally produce dopamine and boost your mental health.
2. Fruits & Vegetables
Eating fruits and green vegetables help your body recover from internal inflammation. In addition, these food items contain antioxidant properties. Antioxidants help boost your immune system and enhance overall health.
What’s more, fruits are rich in vitamins, minerals, and fiber. These fuel your body with enough energy to perform the whole day. When dealing with addiction, individuals might find themselves malnourished. Adding fruits and vegetables helps fill the deficit.
3. Whole Grain
Whole grain food is a must while you are recovering from addiction. Whole-grain foods come with complex carbohydrates that enable you to feel fuller for longer.
Furthermore, whole grain food comes with fiber that helps your gut recover from damage caused by drug and alcohol abuse.
Experts also state that eating whole grain food reduces the chances of diabetes—another reason to eat whole grain food.
4. High Sourced Based Potassium Food
You must have seen that people consume potassium-based food items while recovering. According to the report, it has been seen that potassium excels in recovering the body from damage.
Perhaps, this is why people increase their potassium intake while recovering from addiction.
5. Water
When you are recovering from addiction, dehydration is one of the common problems. Drinking filtered water is the best way to stop dehydration.
Aim for drinking one ounce of water per pound of body weight. We know that it might become difficult to drink this much water during the initial stage, but you must. If you don’t like the taste, try adding flavors.
Water is considered to be a natural detoxifying agent. So, by drinking water, you are rehydrating your body and removing toxins.
Find Help For Your Addiction!
When you are suffering from addiction, eating healthy is not the replacement for addiction recovery treatment. You must understand that nothing can replace addiction recovery treatment.
Eating healthy is one of many factors that boost the recovery process. Eating healthy gives you a healthy body and mind, which helps you withstand the withdrawal symptoms.
So, if you or your family member is suffering from addiction, you must first call for professionals and then comply with other methods.