The Munchies: Your Mate or Your Menace?

The munchies. When I hear that term, I sometimes get a feeling of being infected by a condition for which there is no cure. At other times, the phrase conjures up images of a band of salivating creatures in pursuit of an unsuspecting victim. “The munchies” can be a powerful phenomenon.

I usually get the munchies when I’m feeling stressed. Though the word implies things you can “munch,” implying a more detectable sound when one eats them, my “munchies” fall into two main categories: sweets and savories.

For sweets, I will often have a craving for pie (sometimes Hostess-style) or cake (Plaid Pantry sells a particular brand of carrot cake—single serving with cream cheese frosting—which I’m sure is more chemicals than cake, but I love it) or a certain type of candy. Sweets should be consumed with a glass of milk, or depending on the item, a Diet Coke.

My “savory” munchies can vary from chips and hummus to a Big Mac. Sometimes macaroni and cheese just sounds so good. Or jalapeno poppers. Or nachos. Something with cheese, breading, or spice is often the munchie of choice.

I have a theory about the munchies. I know that smell is the strongest sense in terms of memory . According to Sarah Dowdey in her HowStuffWorks article “How Smell Works,” “A smell can bring on a flood of memories, influence people's moods and even affect their work performance. Because the olfactory bulb is part of the brain's limbic system, an area so closely associated with memory and feeling it's sometimes called the "emotional brain," smell can call up memories and powerful responses almost instantaneously.” I think that when I have eaten certain foods in the past, it may be not so much the taste my brain recalls—although that can be remarkable—but the smells associated with them. When I have eaten certain foods in the past, there have been activities, emotions, environment—all sorts of things associated with them, all of which made me think or feel a certain way—in most cases happy or comforted somehow. Could it be that when I get the munchies a part of my brain is desiring a certain connection—maybe even the secretion of a particular chemical in my brain? Just a pondering theory.

I can tell you that when I eat homemade hashbrowns, I always think of my mom, who used to make them for me when I was young. I can almost smell them cooking and see my mom standing in the kitchen, sharing plans, experiences, humorous anecdotes, and the like. The smell of hashbrowns cooking takes me back to that place in time, where I felt so loved and cared for. Perhaps when I’m under a lot of stress, my brain says “eat hashbrowns—you’ll feel better.” And those memories certainly do make me feel better.

An obvious danger of the munchies, of course, is in what they can do to one’s health. I did mention hummus—that’s healthy, right?—but I’m not always craving hummus. Usually it’s something with very little, if any, nutritional value and laden with sugar, preservatives, or both. The munchies, in moderation, can be a positive outlet for stress or a “treat.” But in their usual form, they amount to a flood of strong appetites that are, admittedly, hard to control. And what does one usually do when in an already weakened state? Give in to them.

So “the munchies,” by that indulgence-prone definition, could be considered a temptation. The strong desire for something that is not good for you, which will result in some kind of consequence if entertained—whether seen or unseen. It could be health-related, weight-related, or more dangerous yet, emotion-related. When you give in to a temptation once, you increase the likelihood that you will do it again. This truth can be applied to any temptation you can think of. Now of course, with the power of the Holy Spirit, one can resist temptation. But experiencing the satisfaction of obeying that desire—even if it’s not good for you—creates further desire—and it may be harder to find a way out the next time. The Bible tells us in I Corinthians 10:13 that “God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

“Endure it” sure doesn’t sound like it will be easy, does it? But God is faithful to help us if we are willing to take that “way out.” Perhaps “the munchies” can serve as a word picture for other types of temptations one may face. “For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it” (Matthew 7:13). When one has the munchies, there are so many choices—so many “good” things to choose from, and one has to have them now. It is the same with other temptations, only some can be even more dangerous to one’s soul. A pantry full of Doritos has different ramifications, for example, than a trail of adulterous thoughts.

“The munchies,” though fun and often joked about, could actually be looked upon as a training ground for withstanding other temptations the enemy may try to throw our way. When Adam and Eve took that first taste of the forbidden fruit, their worlds changed. It only takes a spark to get a fire going. And often, it’s much harder to put out.

We all get the munchies from time to time, but it’s important to ask oneself, “Am I being overindulgent? Is this beneficial for me?” If we can get worn down in our defenses with something as seemingly harmless as food, what else might the enemy try and use to trip us up. I like Cheetos as much as the next person, but I shouldn’t let my zest for junk food be a door that leads to other “junk” in my life. Just a thought.