Emotional food is not just about food … it’s about feelings. The late -evening ice cream bag or the bottomless sack with chips on a stressful day is not always powered by the physical hunger. It is often a reaction to emotional complaints, a way to calm down, distract or even punish. But why do we turn to the food when our hearts, not our stomachs, hurt?
Emotional food is the act of eating food in response to feelings and not as a hunger. These foods usually have sugar, fat or carbohydrates. Feelings can range from stress and sadness to boredom and loneliness. In contrast to the physical hunger, which is gradually building and is satisfied with food, emotional hunger suddenly strikes and longs for specific comfort food.
There are arecommon emotional triggers and psychological patterns that lead to emotional food. Stress and cortisol overload contribute large contributors. When we are stressed, our body free to cortisol, a hormone that increases the appetite and the desire for fat, sugar -containing foods. It is a survival mechanism. In modern life, however, it often leads to excessive food. Comfort and nostalgia with certain foods are bound by memories. Examples can be Mac and Cheese from childhood or cookies baked by a loved one. If you eat you, you can reproduce a feeling of security or warmth.
Emotional food can be a distraction of pain. It can act as an anesthetic agent. Instead of facing fear, grief or anger, we distract ourselves by eating food. It is a temporary escape from discomfort. Emotional food can be a reward and self -operation. Many people use food as a reward. Have you ever said: “I had a hard day, I deserved it”? It becomes a possibility to go to Somoothe when other coping mechanisms are not available or feel too hard. Boredom and lack of stimulation can also stimulate emotional food. When life feels boring or stimulated, the food ensures a quick hit of pleasure. It fills the emptiness.
Emotional food often leads to guilt, shame and regret that can trigger more emotional stress and more food. This creates a vicious circle that includes the following:
- Emotional trigger (stress, sadness, etc.)
- Eat for comfort
- Temporary relief
- Guilt or shame
- Emotional hardship returns
- Repeat
The “why” is the first step towards change. There are suggestions for strategies to make changes. Practice mindful food. Pay attention to hunger instructions, emotional states and the sensory experience of the food. Emotional awareness helps. Talk to the diary or your feelings instead of suppressing them. There are also alternative coping tools such as walking, meditating, calling a friend or working hobbies when the emotions run up. Self -compassion also extends far. Replace the judgment through friendliness. Emotional food doesn’t make you weak, but it makes you human.
Emotional food is not a failure of willpower. There is something deeper under the surface and a signal starts. Listen to this signal. Then you can start not just healing your relationship with food, but to yourself.
Emotional nutrition in healthy people and patients with eating disorder: Evidence of psychometric, experimental and naturalistic studies – PMC
Research the effects of emotional meal among university students: a literature overview
Emotional food in adults: the role of socio-demography, lifestyle behavior and self-regulation findings from a US Study PMC
Cause emotions? The role of earlier experiences and social context in emotional meals on JSTOR
Dr. Megan Johnson McCullough has a fitness studio in Oceanide Ca called Fit of every body. She received her doctorate in health and human performance, MA in Physical Education & Health Science, and is a NASM master and trainer. She is also a professional natural bodybuilder, fitness model, wellness coach and Afaa Group training Instructor. She also has 6 books on Amazon.