How Do I Get My Husband to Quit a Junk Food Addiction?

First, remember that you had a wonderful epiphany-he did not. The fact that he has changed as much as he has shows exactly how much he loves and respects you!

Second, I went through something similar-one day I just wanted to do it all better-I make everything from whole foods and grow my own garden for fresher organic vegetables.
It was a hard transition for my (now ex) husband, even with his family history. I made a deal with him that he could keep one addiction-the stress it causes to be without it can actually be as bad for your health as smoking so let him have one. (some doctors have said stress is as bad as smoking) He chose Dr. Pepper.
Then I started making "healthy" junk food. I make whole wheat, apple sauce, oatmeal cookies or I use barley flour for chocolate chip cookies. I make whole wheat bread often, so he can eat it with butter and still be better than Jack in the Box.
It's all about getting better-add foods one step at a time. If you force him he will just hide it like he has and it will be so much worse than any compromise you have to make. Give him his space to do it his way and remember to encourage and praise him for his efforts rather than criticize for his failures-it will go a long way toward your relationship.
Don't forget exercise. Eating alone will not do it, exercise alone either. If he takes it off he can eat a little bit more and not be as bad off.
Good Luck.

When I met my husband he told me he "had until the age his uncle died of heart attack", and I replied, "you don't have to have a heart attack". Later he told me he never forgot that, and over the year, he went from a diet of ice-cream/hamburgers and coke to homemade food and organic healthy juice (though I still bug him on the huge sugar content...).
This happened little by little, in part because it's easier to eat the healthy food served in front of you than go grab Mac Donald whe you don't have too... Then one day he had some and he said he felt disgusted and sick.
That said... he'd feed on organic chips all day if I let him. And I also find suspicious wrappings sometimes in his car, and the ingredients are enough to give ME a heart attack.
I think nagging has the opposite effect (they eat more junk), so I try gentle reminders (for instance, reminding him the foods that will give him kidney stones, reminding him to not accumulate "bad" foods and try to moderate himself), I give him facts, give him things to read, praise him, and remind him to learn and eat healthy for himself, not for me.
I also give him 'tricks", like instead of taking the whole bag of chips to the couch, take a bowl and when the bowl's done, he's done. I also give plenty of information.
I'm lucky because he's interested, and praise really works.
On the other hand, he's like a lot of men: He won't eat a fruit if I don't peel it for him, and if I'm not home, he'll stuff himself with chips because he's too lazy to make himself an egg... So, I'd say do your best, put out as much information for him as you can, in a calm way, but don't beat yourself up over it too much. Change sometimes happenes pretty slowly, and in several steps. Still sounds like he's on the right track...

Well, this is a hard one. My husband too likes fast food but would not hide it and it does not seem to the extent of your husband. Sometimes the more you push the more he will do it, just like a child. He is an adult after all. I suggest to stop killing yourself about it. Stop worrying and stop bothering him. Yes it is like an addiction but unless he is willing nothing you say or do will make a difference. I learned that you cannot stress on things you cannot change. You have tried and now he buys things you want to eat as well. Give it up, buy a nice life insurance policy, let him know that you want to be covered when he dies of a heart attack, maybe that will scare him. He may not start caring until he starts to get a big belly. My husband does construction and used to eat out everyday double whoppers, sick!! He was never fat as well but now I make him awesome lunches and he looks forward to my amazing sandwiches and salads. He was able to stop and now rarely eats out but if he does I dont care or even mention it.
Good luck.

first, you are doing the right thing. Your kids are around you the most, so just keep feeding them like you want them to eat. Your husband is addicted to this yucky food, just like an alcoholic, and until something happens, like a heart attack, he probably won't get it. What I have done with my husband if I was concerned about something and he did not agree, I would call his doctor, and ask him to approach the subject with him.
Just keep up the good work with you and the kids. Don't let him push the kids into the juck he eats.
Griping at him will probably only make him want it more, so keep trying to encourage him to eat good around the kids, tell him you will not allow the kids to eat what he eats, and offer new receipes for him to try.
Good luck and stay strong!

K.
www.karen4betterhealth.com

Sarah, you may not like what you read. I just caution you.

I am a family wellness coach and I see this very often. One parent wants healthy living for their family and one doesn’t. One wants to be a vegetarian and one doesn't. One wants child to go to a private school for a better education and one doesn't, one wants (fill in blank) and the other doesn't. I will tell you what I know from my experience.

I know that children learn what they live. If mom says no and models no but dad does it anyway, they see that dad has no respect for mom and therefore that is what they learn.

I know that actions speak louder than words. A child SEES everything (even when we think we are doing a good job of hiding it)

I know that it is not necessary to tell you or your husband about the negative effects of healthy eating, so what I will share with you are some statistics that may shed some light on the effects on your children.

1. Children are being diagnosed as young as 8 with Type 2 Diabetes, and adult disease whose main cause is obesity.

2. Children today have a shorter life expectancy than that of their parents, the first time in recorded history this has ever happened…. CAUSE? Poor diet.

3. Children will suffer from more medical conditions than their parents ever did, and at an earlier age. CAUSE? poor diet.

Sarah, you get to decide, but if you think that a junk food addiction is any better than an
alcohol or drug addiction, you are kidding yourself.

Perhaps you and your husband will watch this trailer together:
www.FoodMatters.TV

It is not about you “nagging him”, it is about you saving your children.

B.
Family Welness Coach