Emotional Eating: How to Break the Cycle

What is “emotional” eating?

Ever find yourself drowning your sorrows with a pile of cookies? Or wolfing a basket of chips and guacamole with your margarita, even though you “weren’t hungry” when you went to happy hour with your gal pals? Or find the bowl of popcorn you were munching on while you watched TV mysteriously empty, even though you ate your dinner just before you plopped down on the couch?
All of those scenarios probably involved emotional eating – filling your pie hole for reasons other than hunger. Unlike eating to stop the growling in your tummy, emotional eating generally involves unhealthy foods. And while turning to food isn’t inherently bad (its your body’s way of trying to ease the sting of that breakup), it becomes a problem when it’s the only way you cope with hard times.

Stress Much? 

Many times, stress can lead to emotional eating. Stress causes a spike in insulin, which can cause you to crave sugary foods, like cookies, chocolate, and candy. Of course, if you give and indulge, that itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny bikini won’t look so hot anymore, and then the stress will get worse – which leads to more emotional eating. You get the picture, and it ain’t a pretty one.
But if you’re sitting there rolling your eyes like, no shit I eat when I’m stressed, consider this: a recent UCLA study found that stress actually reinforces your eating habits, whether they’re good or bad – meaning that whichever foods you normally turn to when you’re feeling blue are the ones you’re most likely to repeatedly binge on. And how many of us turn to carrot sticks when shit hits the fan? Exactly. Hello, vicious cycle.
“Habits don’t change in a high-pressure situation,” study author
David Neal told Psych Central. “People default to what their habits are under stress, whether healthy or not.”
Moreover, other research this year found that women who suffer from binge eating disorder and body dissatisfaction are more likely to suffer from anxiety, depression and an increased tendency toward suicide.

Beat the Urge

Rather than reaching for comfort foods, there are ways to deal with your issues:
F
igure out what the issue is that’s causing the emotional urge to eat.  If you are bored, stressed, or depressed, all of those issues can usually be helped with exercise, for example. It will keep you occupied, relieve stress, and give you an endorphin rush that will help boost your serotonin levels and mood. And it will help you lose pounds instead of packing them on. If there are more serious issues going on, don’t be shy – see a shrink and call it a day.

Drink water. Drinking a glass of water can fill you up and curb cravings. Some health experts say that about 60 percent of our hunger pangs are actually the body crying out for water. So hydrate, silly.

Stock the cupboards with healthy food.  If you eat more fruits and veggies, your body will tend to crave those instead of junk, even if you’re eating for emotional reasons.  If you down a plate of celery sticks in front of the boob tube, at least it won’t cause feelings of guilt the next day.

Practice gratitude. It’s impossible to entertain a negative thought and a positive one simultaneously.  When you are stressed, bored, or feeling negative, think of a dozen things you’re grateful for. Even if that big project feels overwhelming, you can feel grateful to have a job and a paycheck and the IQ to complete the project. Sound cliché? Don’t knock it ’til you try it.

Don’t give up. We all have setbacks from time to time. Just because you fall off the wagon and eat a cupcake, it doesn’t mean you need to eat a dozen. Tomorrow is a new day. We all have good ones and bad ones, but the more you pay attention to your feelings and reasons for eating, the more you can control your reaction to the situation – and what you put into your mouth. Shaming and blaming yourself doesn’t help. Respond with love, ask the powers that be for help next time, and move on with your day.


Lori Kenyon, Contributing Writer
Former corporate attorney and master of the loop-hole, in 2010, Lori co-founded the kick-ass raw organic juice company, Ritual Wellness.  Lori now spends her time producing a healthy alternative to chemical- ridden, nutrient-void drinks in the market, and writing  to help educate people about healthy food choices.