Emotional Eating: what you should know +Details

Emotional eating affects both men and women. It may be caused by a number of factors, including stress, hormonal changes, or mixed hunger cues.

Do you find yourself racing to the pantry when you’re feeling down or otherwise upset? Finding comfort in food is common, and it’s part of a practice called emotional eating.

People who emotionally eat reach for food several times a week or more to suppress and soothe negative feelingsTrusted Source. They may even feel guilt or shame after eating this way, leading to a cycle of excess eating and associated issues, like weight gain.

What causes someone to eat because of their emotions?

Anything from work stress to financial worries, health issues to relationship struggles may be the root cause of your emotional eating.

It’s an issue that affects both sexes. But according to different studies, emotional eating is more common with women than with men.

Why food?

Negative emotions may lead to a feeling of emptiness or an emotional void. Food is believed to be a way to fill that void and create a false feeling of “fullness” or temporary wholeness.

Other factors include:

• ^{retreating from social support during times}

  ^{of emotional need}

• ^{not engaging in activities that might otherwise}

  ^{relieve stress, sadness, and so on}

• ^{not understanding the difference between physical and emotional}

  ^hunger

• ^{using negative self-talking that’s related to bingeing}

  ^{episodes. This can create a cycle of emotional eating}

• ^{changing cortisol levels in response to stress, leading to}

  ^cravings.

Sources:

www.healthline.com/

www.verywellmind.com