This post was written by Gia Marson, EdD
Have you ever promised yourself that you would “be good” with food this week, only to find yourself eating out of control? If so, you are not weak and you are not alone. This template is not a personal failure. This is often a predictable result of the rules you adopt.
When food becomes a moral test
We tend to talk about food in language ethics. Some foods are labeled as “clean,” “safe,” or “good”; others are “rubbish”, “cheating” or “bad”. The first kind of food can make us feel virtuous; eating the second, guilty. A recent qualitative study of restrictive eating found that people often develop a sense of moral person around dietary discipline, experiencing strict eating as a display of virtue and self control. And when we apply moral messages to conversations about eating, even a small step away from what we’re told is ideal can have a negative impact on our judgment. to speak for oneself and how we see ourselves. In other words, following strict dietary rules goes hand in hand with being a good person.
Restraint, rebranded as a healthy lifestyle
This message is everywhere and social networks adds fuel to it. In 2025, researchers analyzed approximately 100,000 posts about food and nutrition on Instagram and found that content representing restrictive diets and approaches to eating was common. A 2024 study of online health images and content found that they normalize food restriction as natural and surprising, and undermine people’s attitudes about their bodies:
“…Although in the past these trends were associated with public figures or political, artistic or beauty fields, today it is widespread and of considerable interest, as personal value is increasingly linked to the ability to meet certain standards of beauty, even at a young age.” – Zaharia and Gonta, 2024
It may come as a surprise: movement is risk
When the researchers tracked the teenagers’ eating in real time throughout the day, they found something wrong: whether or not the person was actually eating less, trying to limit themselves, which was later associated with a loss of control. Trying to limit consumption was a risk in itself. The mental act of controlling, resisting, and forbidding seemed to set up the very loss of control it was supposed to prevent.
Why does trying to limit make things worse? Because strict, rule-following works against your biology and psychology at the same time. Trying not to eat enough sets off an internal alarm as your body wants to get enough food to meet your energy and activity levels. Therefore, your body begins to encourage you to eat more in order to maintain or return to homeostasis. Additionally, planning less meals can cause you to preoccupy with food, which can interfere with your natural hunger and fullness cues and your ability to focus on other parts of your life. Summary: trying to eat less is abnormal.
What helps? Fewer rules and less moral judgment
The goal is to eat less boring again, in the best sense: predictable, adequate, satisfying and flexible. This means eating regularly, including foods you genuinely enjoy, and not using eating as an argument for or against your worth. When food becomes the test of your goodness, it may just be a way to feed yourself.
If this pattern of restricting eating and then losing control is familiar to you, acknowledging and accepting it is the starting point for change. However, if your relationship with food is bothering you or difficult to manage on your own, please consult a qualified professional. Support helps.
To find a therapist, Visit the Psychology Therapy Directory today.
