What’s Eating You?: How to Stop Emotional Eating
Like many of my patients, you may have been given a treat as a child, such as ice cream, chips, candy or a cookie, or some other favorite food, when something upset you, in a well-intentioned effort by the parent or caregiver to calm him down knock you down and make you smile again. If so, you were inadvertently programmed to “emotional eating,” that is, eating to calm your emotions whenever a problem, or even a perceived problem, occurs.
Their immediate reaction to something upsetting is to eat: Many people, including my patients, get in the car and drive by the local fast food joint to get a quick ice cream cone or hamburger and gobble it up in the parking lot. Or, raid the cupboards for chips or cookies or even prepare a whole meal of something that appeals to him at the moment to help him get over the unease. Does this ring a bell? If so, you’ll want to read my recommendations on how to stop this unhealthy eating pattern.
Is your food eating you?
You may be surprised how many people engage in emotional “binges.” They eat out of depression, stress, anger, loneliness, low feelings of self-worth, and just plain boredom! It may seem harmless, but it can actually lead to dangerous health disorders such as bulimia, that is, binge eating and then vomiting, or dangerous excessive weight gain. In fact, health experts estimate that about 75% of overeating is due to “emotional” causes. Emotional eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, affect more women than men, with around 10 million women and 1 million men engaging in this behavior. However, there are millions more Americans who simply eat out of emotional stress.
Most chronic emotional eaters instinctively know to turn to food (and even other substances like alcohol or drugs) during times of stress. However, you may fall into the occasional group of emotional eaters/drinkers. The following true-false questions can help you consider which pattern you best fit into:
1.True___False___. Under emotional stress, I am more prone to unhealthy eating or drinking behavior patterns.
2.True___False___. I take pride in the things I accomplish.
3. True___ False____. I can always find an excuse not to exercise regularly.
4. True___ False____. I find it difficult to stay interested/committed to completing a goal.
5. True___ False____. I only do something if there is a reward potential.
6.True___False____. I trust in myself.
7. True___ False____. I often feel guilty/sorry after eating long after an emotional breakdown.
8. True___ False____. I often feel empty, alone, missing in some way.
Scoring: If you answered True to questions 1, 3, 4, 5, or 7, you need to make adjustments to your eating/drinking patterns before your health suffers. If you answered True to questions 1, 2, or 6, and False to most of the other questions, you may only be using food or drink occasionally to calm yourself. However, this behavior could result in unhealthy eating patterns in the future.
Feel stressed? Don’t eat, exercise!
Interestingly, one of the worst things you can do is gorge yourself on a lot of food when you’re stressed, especially high-fat and starchy “comfort” foods that many emotional eaters turn to like chips, cakes and cookies, ice cream, etc. Most people who eat under stress often end up with severe stomach aches, headaches, and just generally not feeling well. During stress, all of your muscles tense, including the muscles of digestion. This results in the food not being digested properly and can cause unpleasant reactions such as cramps, stomach acid, gas, because the food cannot be fully digested and remains in the stomach undigested for hours.
Since I recommend to my patients who occasionally or frequently eat emotionally, try some of these activities when stressed instead of eating:
1. Exercise. I’m listing this first because I feel like it’s actually the best thing to do instead of eating unhealthy food. Exercise burns off stress and produces “feel good” brain chemicals called endorphins that can snap you out of a bad mood pretty quickly and turn off the food alarm.
2. Call a friend. If you’re upset about something, calling a friend or loved one can help you calm down before you go out looking for food. Of course, someone isn’t always available to talk to, so have a Plan B, like any of the other suggestions here.
3. Breathe. This may sound silly, but deep breathing exercises along with the old favorite, “count to 10,” really work to calm you down. I eat? Bring more oxygen to your body! In times of stress, most people take shallow/rapid breaths, which can actually cause dizziness due to low blood oxygen levels, which can make you feel worse.
4. Distract yourself. Do something: do laundry, wash the car, walk the dog, put on music (not the TV, as it tends to encourage eating).
Emotional eating is a serious disorder. It can even lead to life-threatening events of excessively high blood sugar levels or continued vomiting that damages the tissues of the esophagus. These can set the stage for more serious diseases like diabetes, ulcers, and even cancer. Take control of your emotional eating today by trying some of the recommendations I offer my own patients.