Could hypnosis help beat junk food addiction?

New research has found that the UK has the unhealthiest diet in Europe, with Brits consuming five times more processed food than Portugal, and four times more than France, Greece, or Italy.

According to HypnoSlimming, 50% of the average person’s diet in the UK is processed food, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.

It says this kind of processed junk food can be as addictive as hard drugs, with salt and sugar being habit-forming substances that create positive feedback loops in the brain.

Eating any food triggers the release of dopamine in the brain, however certain sugars, fats, and processed chemicals can have the same effect as cocaine, flooding our brain with more dopamine than it is used to, thus overriding dopamine pathways to only release the neurochemical when we eat those unhealthy foods, which causes an addiction.

This leads to cravings, which are distinctly different from hunger. Hunger is when our body needs sustenance; cravings are when our bodies want a reward. Dopamine is not necessary for maintenance of the body, only as a reward which makes us repeat behaviour. This is why some people eat junk food even when they’re not hungry.

Eating less of these foods can eventually reset our dopamine levels and responses, but this is easier said than done. Fighting addiction is one of the toughest things a person can do, especially when combined with the fact that so much of what we eat is the very thing we’re trying to cut out of our system.

HypnoSlimming claims hypnosis can bypass the addiction by tapping into the power of the subconscious mind, meaning people eat less junk food without exerting any effort.

Hypnosis expert Adam Cox is offering a free hypnosis test to find out if hypnosis is right for anyone trying to lose weight or get healthier.

He says: “Foods that are high in sugar or salt are more likely to be addictive, when blood sugar levels are lowered there is a physical craving which is hard to resist. For people with processed food addiction I use hypnosis to help them believe that junk food is toxic or poisonous.

“People respond to foods differently if they associate them with being dangerous. Since junk food is responsible for so many health issues from obesity to Type 2 diabetes it’s not difficult for the unconscious mind to accept that junk food is genuinely dangerous.

“However since not everyone can afford to work with a Harley Street hypnotherapist I’ve created an audio download that can help people destroy their cravings for unhealthy food.

“Changing eating habits, especially if you can’t control yourself, is never easy, which is why so many people are turning to hypnosis to get the help they need.”