Nutrition & Addiction Recovery To Drugs & Alcohol

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A healthy diet is an important factor in overall well-being, but nutrition plays a crucial role for those in recovery. Even short-term substance misuse can force the body to work overtime to protect itself. Nutritional support is essential for repairing the physical and psychological harm caused by addiction.

What Role Does Nutrition Play in Addiction Recovery?

Nutrition and addiction recovery affect every aspect of your health. A diet filled with healthy foods can help ease withdrawal symptoms and repair the damage caused by extended drug use.

The correct nutritional program can help erase the physical signs of alcoholism and drug addiction. Therapies designed to treat substance abuse and nutrition counseling are both important aspects of a comprehensive treatment plan.

How Drugs and Alcohol Can Disrupt Nutrition

When a person is addicted to drugs or alcohol, their daily goal is to obtain and use the substances they crave. There may be little money left to buy healthy food, and the individual may not have the energy or desire to prepare balanced meals.

There is also the possibility that people struggling with addiction do not have a safe, sanitary place to prepare food if they want to.

Substance use can even rob your body of the nutrients you do take in. For example, opioid addiction may cause a loss of fluids, increasing malnutrition risk.

How Substance Abuse Affects Appetite

Substance-related changes in appetite can disrupt the body’s ability to take in adequate nourishment. Some examples of how substance abuse affects appetite include:

  • Abuse of stimulants reduces the appetite to a dangerous degree

  • Meth and other stimulants can cause dental problems that make it difficult to eat

  • Alcohol abuse reduces the body’s ability to absorb vitamins and minerals

  • Some individuals forget to eat while under the influence of drugs

  • Relying on fast food and junk food can lead to obesity and malnourishment

  • Drug and alcohol abuse can cause gastrointestinal disorders

Chronic alcohol and drug abuse can affect a person’s appetite simply by making them feel sick. This is one reason nutrition and addiction recovery are closely linked; ending the addiction cycle is necessary to improve nutrition.

How Nutrients Can Benefit the Body

The body relies on food to synthesize many of the nutrients it needs. The main categories of nutrients are carbohydrates, fats, and protein, but many more are needed to maintain health and vitality.

Nutrients are responsible for building and repairing body tissues and providing the proper structure for bones, ligaments, and blood vessels to function.

The Role of Nutrition During Rehab

If you’re still wondering, “Is alcoholism a disease?” the answer is yes. It is defined as a disease that affects the brain and all the other systems within the body.

The connection between nutrition and recovering alcoholics is an important one. Chronic alcohol or drug abuse robs the body of vitamins needed for the brain, heart, liver, and other organs to function properly.

Nutritional therapy replenishes the body and helps it begin to repair. Proper nutrition alleviates withdrawal symptoms, including cravings, and restores emotional balance. Following a healthy diet is one of the lifestyle changes that recovery patients must maintain if they wish to avoid relapse.

Top Foods for Addiction Recovery

Exactly which foods are best for an individual’s recovery varies according to each person’s specific needs. An alcohol recovery diet may differ from a stimulant recovery diet. However, the following foods are beneficial for anyone interested in nutrition and addiction recovery:

  • Fresh vegetables, especially leafy green vegetables

  • Avocados

  • Nuts

  • Fish

  • Poultry

  • Lean meat

  • Bananas

  • Whole grains

  • Sweet potatoes

  • Citrus fruits

  • Honey

The role of proper hydration during recovery should not be overlooked. Including plenty of plain water, coconut water, and low-sugar electrolyte drinks is also important.

Final Thoughts

You may not usually think about the importance of food for drug addiction recovery, but nutrition plays a major role in every person’s health. Individuals who have spent months or even years without eating a healthy diet because of an addiction can benefit from specialized nutritional therapy.

Contact Acqua Recovery today for more information about all of the programs we offer to treat addiction.

Nutrition & Addiction Recovery To Drugs & Alcohol

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Dr. Daniel Pickrell

Dr. Daniel Pickrell
Medical Reviewer

Dr. Pickrell is a board-certified psychiatrist with interests in addiction and psychiatry. He strives to identify the underlying cause of substance use. His understanding of addiction as the overlapping symptoms of biopsychosocial development is the foundation to his care model. He is committed to helping both patients and families understand that addiction is a treatable medical illness. He has been involved in the treatment of addiction for the last 17 years and completed his residency training at the University of Utah.

By: Acqua Recovery

Posted Date: Feb 1, 2023

Updated Date: Nov 5, 2024

A healthy diet is an important factor in overall well-being, but nutrition plays a crucial role for those in recovery. Even short-term substance misuse can force the body to work overtime to protect itself. Nutritional support is essential for repairing the physical and psychological harm caused by addiction.

What Role Does Nutrition Play in Addiction Recovery?

Nutrition and addiction recovery affect every aspect of your health. A diet filled with healthy foods can help ease withdrawal symptoms and repair the damage caused by extended drug use.

The correct nutritional program can help erase the physical signs of alcoholism and drug addiction. Therapies designed to treat substance abuse and nutrition counseling are both important aspects of a comprehensive treatment plan.

How Drugs and Alcohol Can Disrupt Nutrition

When a person is addicted to drugs or alcohol, their daily goal is to obtain and use the substances they crave. There may be little money left to buy healthy food, and the individual may not have the energy or desire to prepare balanced meals.

There is also the possibility that people struggling with addiction do not have a safe, sanitary place to prepare food if they want to.

Substance use can even rob your body of the nutrients you do take in. For example, opioid addiction may cause a loss of fluids, increasing malnutrition risk.

How Substance Abuse Affects Appetite

Substance-related changes in appetite can disrupt the body’s ability to take in adequate nourishment. Some examples of how substance abuse affects appetite include:

  • Abuse of stimulants reduces the appetite to a dangerous degree

  • Meth and other stimulants can cause dental problems that make it difficult to eat

  • Alcohol abuse reduces the body’s ability to absorb vitamins and minerals

  • Some individuals forget to eat while under the influence of drugs

  • Relying on fast food and junk food can lead to obesity and malnourishment

  • Drug and alcohol abuse can cause gastrointestinal disorders

Chronic alcohol and drug abuse can affect a person’s appetite simply by making them feel sick. This is one reason nutrition and addiction recovery are closely linked; ending the addiction cycle is necessary to improve nutrition.

How Nutrients Can Benefit the Body

The body relies on food to synthesize many of the nutrients it needs. The main categories of nutrients are carbohydrates, fats, and protein, but many more are needed to maintain health and vitality.

Nutrients are responsible for building and repairing body tissues and providing the proper structure for bones, ligaments, and blood vessels to function.

The Role of Nutrition During Rehab

If you’re still wondering, “Is alcoholism a disease?” the answer is yes. It is defined as a disease that affects the brain and all the other systems within the body.

The connection between nutrition and recovering alcoholics is an important one. Chronic alcohol or drug abuse robs the body of vitamins needed for the brain, heart, liver, and other organs to function properly.

Nutritional therapy replenishes the body and helps it begin to repair. Proper nutrition alleviates withdrawal symptoms, including cravings, and restores emotional balance. Following a healthy diet is one of the lifestyle changes that recovery patients must maintain if they wish to avoid relapse.

Top Foods for Addiction Recovery

Exactly which foods are best for an individual’s recovery varies according to each person’s specific needs. An alcohol recovery diet may differ from a stimulant recovery diet. However, the following foods are beneficial for anyone interested in nutrition and addiction recovery:

  • Fresh vegetables, especially leafy green vegetables

  • Avocados

  • Nuts

  • Fish

  • Poultry

  • Lean meat

  • Bananas

  • Whole grains

  • Sweet potatoes

  • Citrus fruits

  • Honey

The role of proper hydration during recovery should not be overlooked. Including plenty of plain water, coconut water, and low-sugar electrolyte drinks is also important.

Final Thoughts

You may not usually think about the importance of food for drug addiction recovery, but nutrition plays a major role in every person’s health. Individuals who have spent months or even years without eating a healthy diet because of an addiction can benefit from specialized nutritional therapy.

Contact Acqua Recovery today for more information about all of the programs we offer to treat addiction.

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