NEWS Eating right tricky when with friends

FRIENDS and workmates can be our worst enemies when it comes to healthy eating.

According to new research conducted by Taste.com.au as part of the Eat Real campaign, 51 per cent admitted that when their friends indulge they find it hard not to join them; and a massive 87 per cent of people trying to eat healthily have given up as a result of a single social event.

The findings highlight the influence of the feel-good chemical dopamine, released by our brain’s reward system when we cave into our cravings. Then once we start we can’t stop, thanks to a psychological response dubbed the “what-the-hell effect”, which triggers a vicious cycle of indulgence, followed by shame, then greater indulgence.

“It’s not surprising to learn these statistics, given how social Aussies are in general,” said naturopath and author of The Healthy Gut, Reece Carter.

“I’ve definitely been there before. Just recently I was doing Dry January and found myself tempted to have a drink with friends almost every time I was out – and I’m not even a big drinker. It was that fear of missing out,” he said.

Many people find it hard to go against the consensus of a group at the risk of seeming rude or causing a fuss. The research highlighted a number of interesting statistics.

More than a quarter of respondents said they feel out of control when it comes to food choices; 49 per cent said once they start eating something they like, they just can’t stop even though they know they should; 48 per cent said they know what they should be eating to stay healthy but struggle when it comes to putting this into action; 42 per cent often feel frustrated with their food choice after they have eaten it – while 58 per cent get a guilt attack when they eat unhealthily.

Rather than pointing the finger at our friends or our poor willpower, however, we really should blame unrealistic diets, said Dr Nick Fuller, an obesity expert from the University of Sydney.

“If you restrict foods, what eventually happens is those cravings come back with a vengeance and you end up overindulging. This puts us in a worse position than where we started,” Dr Fuller said.

Eat Real features recipes and menu plans, news stories and a Facebook support group and the new Eat Real Unwrapped podcast series – and it is all for free at taste.com.au/ eatreal