The Moderation Trap

Condition

Moderation is permission: Choosing to eat a food in moderation is born out of knowing somewhere deep inside you that the food you're choosing may not be safe. We use the term 'moderation' to give ourselves permission to consume that food. Moderation is permission to self-indulge or self-sabotage.
Peer pressure and punishment: If you choose to fight the brainwashing of moderation, you get your wrists smacked. Those who give themselves permission to indulge find it unsettling when you decide to go in your own direction. They point to you as out of balance.
Moderation is undefinable: Moderation cannot be defined. It's a rule-less definition because it's different for everyone. Each individual's limitations are different. One person's moderation can kill another person.
Alcohol moderation trap: We hide our alcohol addiction behind the word moderation as if it's a shield. Everyone's moderation when it comes to alcohol is different: one person drinks every day and calls it moderation, another drinks only weekends, another gets straight-out drunk once a month.
Conditioning to go against instincts: We're told that if we only engage in 'reasonable' amounts, questionable foods and practices such as microdosing, caffeine, and alcohol can benefit us. Our conditioning is so strong that we blame ourselves instead of the substances when they don't work out.