don't know what its called

[EchoRain]

I'm not sure what its called or if it has a name I think its partly binge eating

I eat sometimes just for the taste of something. Mostly when I feel like this I want either meat or cheese... and this happens a lot. I'm not hungry when I do this and sometimes I have to try a few times to find something to satisfy this want... I sometimes can't even figure out what it is I'm craving I just know i want... something. And actually it happens with other things other than meat or cheese too

 

[Angeldove97]

Hi EchoRain
What you might be dealing with is over eating and there's a special organization called Overeaters Anonymous that has put together a way of living to help those who deal with it. Some information from their site:

In Overeaters Anonymous, you’ll find members who are extremely overweight, even morbidly obese; moderately overweight; average weight; underweight; still maintaining periodic control over their eating behavior; or totally unable to control their compulsive eating.
OA members experience many different patterns of food behaviors. These “symptoms” are as varied as our membership. Among them are:

• obsession with body weight, size and shape
• eating binges or grazing
• preoccupation with reducing diets
• starving
• laxative or diuretic abuse
• excessive exercise
• inducing vomiting after eating
• chewing and spitting out food
• use of diet pills, shots and other medical interventions to control weight
• inability to stop eating certain foods after taking the first bite
• fantasies about food
• vulnerability to quick-weight-loss schemes
• constant preoccupation with food
• using food as a reward or comfort

Our symptoms may vary, but we share a common bond: we are powerless over food and our lives are unmanageable.

From: About OA - Overeaters Anonymous

I've been dealing with overeating since I was a young child-- I realize that now and for the last two or three years I've been accepting the fact that I'm an over eater and that I need to be aware of what I'm doing in order to take care of my body. So you might want to look into the resources about over eating-- like you described I eat just simply for the effect that tasting something yummy has. For me, it's a calming sensation and something fun to do-- my husband and I both enjoy to cook and are what you might call "food" people (we love to try new dishes and visit special supermarkets to see what they have).

Do you know what triggers this want to taste something?

 

[drjean]

You might also be needing some ingredient in those things you crave... your body knows what it needs. Be sure to eat good nutritious meals and snacks and see if the cravings go away (you might also need to eat more often, to avoid that craving?)

And then, my allergist told me that you either Crave or Abhor what you are allergic to... and he was right in my case! Everything I craved and every food I hated--I turned out to be allergic to. Check with an allergist or your MD maybe?

 

[12butterflydust]

@Echorain and @Angeldove
Um, to be honest, I wouldn't call this "overeating" so quickly.
I don't think there's enough information to attach a title like that here.

I guess you need to clarify the "binge" nature of it.
A binge involves eating a large proportion of food in a discrete time period (<2hours typically), and also involves a loss of control over the eating (such that you can't stop).

There is also two types of binges - objective (eating an amount of food that would be deemed large by society) vs. subjective binge (eating an amount of food that was deemed large by yourself - i.e. a single 100g chocolate bar, often a perception in anorexia/bulimia/restrictive eating). Both types involve the "loss of control."

Additionally, is your motivation one of an emotional origin? What are you feeling at the time? Are you sad, anxious, bored, procrastinating?

I agree with drJean above. There may be a physiological reason for your cravings due to nutritional deficiencies or an imbalance in your "normal diet." Also there may be hormonal reason. Perhaps even other reasons, if you have a disordered satiety "fullness" response.

To be honest, it's hard to make an accurate comment on what is going on with your eating without knowing your eating patterns and timings, and what is going on emotionally for you. If you are resorting to emotional binge eating you may wish to see a psychologist to solve underlying issues. If the cravings are causing you to put on weight, perhaps a dietician review of your eating patterns will help to see why the cravings may be occuring.

Hope I was helpful All the best