DNJ Column Number 17: Emotional Eating

1 MTSU Wellness Program Emotional Eating – The Root of Weight Gain and Poor Health

by Mark H. Anshel, Ph.D.

Some of you may be thinking that the topic of this column could not come at a worse time – the Christmas holidays when we eat more food (especially food high in fat) than at any other time of the year. But, wait, it’s also the time when you are more likely to make New Year’s resolutions about losing a few pounds (oh no, not another diet), starting a new exercise program

– again – and just taking better care of yourself. The timing of an article about how certain eating patterns are harmful to health is very timely so that you start thinking about how for more energy

– what I call eating strategically – for either maintaining or losing body fat.

We all love to eat – and we should. It’s part of our culture and an important source of happiness. There is a pleasure center in our brain that is connected to our recognition of favorite dishes and flavors. When certain food flavors are tasted and the pleasure center is stimulated, we feel instant gratification and our mood immediately improves. We feel more happiness, enthusiasm, and energy, and experience less stress, anxiety, and other negative emotions.

So why are human beings are the only species on the planet who eat when they are not hungry, and often consume food in response to their emotions rather than to actual hunger? Too often we eat in response to stress, anxiety, boredom, happiness, or some other feeling. Mental health professionals refer to our tendency to eat in response to certain emotions as “emotional eating.” Emotional eaters rarely succeed with diets and even exercise programs because their food consumption is driven by all the wrong reasons.

Emotional eating is not normal eating. It consists of eating for the wrong reasons. We view food as a friend. It’s not, of course. Food is a source of fuel to sustain life. Food consumption is ignited by a process called “irrational thinking.” Irrational thinking consists of beliefs that are not based on fact and influenced by a person’s flawed, inaccurate or unhealthy views of the world. 2 Examples of irrational thinking related to eating and weight control are “Eating feels the emptiness inside me,” “I don’t deserve to have a normal weight,” “I should not be hungry,” “I need to lose weight – even if my doctor says my weight is fine,” “Others must think I look terrible,” “I need to smoke to control my eating and not gain weight,” “I was ‘good’ today so I can have dessert (or an extra helping),” and “eating is the only pleasure I have in life.”

Karen Koenig, a psychotherapist, educator, and author of the book, “The Rules of

Normal Eating,” discusses the different reasons we eat that have nothing to do with hunger.

These include restrictive eating (you don’t eat because food is “the enemy;” you place yourself on a lifelong diet, and feel guilt or shame around food), compulsive or passive eating (eating mindlessly, without thinking about your actions, such as constant snacking in front of the TV), overeating (eating after you feel full), and emotional overeating (“food is my friend because it’s comfortable; I like to feel full”). The goal of an emotional eater is to be a “normal eater.”

Ms. Koenig asserts that “restrictive eaters almost always say no to food, whereas compulsive/emotional eaters almost exclusively say yes. Both are out of balance with their wants and out of touch with their needs.” Normal eaters, on the other hand, say yes and no a to food at the appropriate times because they trust their body to tell them the truth about what it needs.

A normal eater, according to psychologists who specialize in eating disorders, is a person who does not think of “good” or “bad” foods. They are aware of high and low calorie foods and may choose what to eat based on the food’s caloric count. But they do not base their food intake on how many calories or fat grams. They love food and love to eat, but they eat nutritiously.

Here are some guidelines for normal, healthy eating:

Eat when you are hungry. Avoid eating for emotional reasons such as boredom, happiness, stress, or any other emotion.

Make good choices about the kinds of foods we eat. Pastry (cakes, pies, cookies, chocolate) are not necessarily bad for us; it’s when we consume them in large amounts or when they replace nutritious meals when we have weight and health problems. 3 Stop eating when you are full. Overeating is a waste (and a waist) of food. Use this 6-point scale as a guideline (aim for 3 or 4 on the Hunger Scale, which is often used by registered dieticians for giving dietary advice)

Sandee, can we use a sidebar for this scale? Thanks. Mark Sidebar: Hunger Scale 6 = feeling absolutely full; food “coma;” feel like falling asleep 5 = clothes feel tight, feel sluggish, not alert; unproductive 4 = feel full; not stuffed, bloated, or sleepy; food lasts 3-4 hours 3 = feel satisfied; not hungry anymore; food lasts 2-3 hours 2 = feeling hungry; stomach growling 1 = feel light headed, unfocused, irritable; highly unproductive

Eating more often to a 3 will decrease your body fat percentage; Eating more often to a 4 will maintain or slightly increase your body fat percentage.

Eat strategically. This means developing an eating pattern that improves energy and controls weight. Relatively small portions every 3-4 hours will maintain energy and body fat. Stop munching when bored or when watching TV – or choose celery or carrot sticks.

Don’t punish yourself by excessive food intake. Allow yourself to enjoy yourself and eat as much as you want – as long overeating is not a daily habit.

NEVER smoke as a way to control weight. Several studies have shown that smoking is so damaging to health that it is better to weigh a few extra pounds – even to the point of obesity – and not smoke, then to smoke and weigh less.

Ignore your full body weight scale. Exercise is very important for controlling weight, but it may not result in significant weight loss. The reason is because exercise increases muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat. Avoid using the weight scale as an indicator of the benefits of exercise and proper nutrition in weight control. 4 Do not eat to please others. At one Thanksgiving dinner. I finished a wonderful dinner and felt comfortably full when the mother of the dinner’s hostess said to me, “You would make me so happy if you had another helping.” I thought to myself, so this is what psychologists call “eating for love.” Eating to show our love is one of our culture’s biggest traps for weight gain. We associate refusing food with turning away love.

Bad work eating habits. Avoid eating out every day for lunch—or at your desk while distracted by e-mail and phone calls--tends to make you overeat and choose the wrong food. Try to brown- bag it and take enough time out so you can actually chew your food. And most importantly, stay far away from the desk with the candy dish or birthday cake. A study at Cornell University found that those who sit closer to an office candy dish tend to both eat more candy and underestimate their consumption.

Eating at work. From the free donuts at a morning meeting to the postwork happy hours, a day at work can be a high-cal activity. The free-food calories add up quickly—a Krispy Kreme donut in the morning runs 200 calories; a few handfuls of peanuts can cost you 117 calories, which would take you about 13 minutes of jogging to burn off. Office eating can often be increased by your proximity to the freebies. Keep them out of sight.

Chew your food. Studies have shown that you will feel full sooner if you chew your food; it should be liquified before swallowing – on average about 25 chews, depending on the food.

Chewing food sufficiently improves the efficiency of digestion, and helps prevent gas, bloating, and heartburn. Slower, more mindful eating also increases enjoyment of the food's flavors. When you eat and swallow big chunks in a hurry, it's much harder for the food to break down.

Avoid midnight snacking. One common poor eating habit is to wake up in the middle of the night and eat a snack – sometimes a full meal. Midnight snacking is not a healthy habit. Not only does it disrupt a good night of sleep, but it adds calories that will more likely be stored as fat.

Studies have also shown that late night and midnight food consumption promotes heart disease.

Dieticians tell us that the main reason for feeling hunger in the middle of the night – when you 5 should be sleeping – is poor eating habits – skipping meals, ingesting too few calories - during the day, especially if the person is active and stressed. Your body craves calories (glycogen) for fuel at a time you should be sleeping. Improved eating habits during the day are the answer.

Dieticians tell us that a glass of juice, milk, or even a glass of cold water will reduce our hunger.

Beliefs determine behavior. Mental health professionals tell us that our beliefs help determine our feelings and behaviors. Therefore, if we believe our eating habits, body weight, and general health and well being are just fine, thank you, there no chance of changing the behaviors that are causing us problems. We are offered a piece of pie, decide we want it because we deserve it and, beside, we don’t want to insult the person who has offered it. We decide to eat it – ok, so we take a BIG piece, but who’s looking? But if our beliefs were different, we might reject the pie and save over 400-600 calories. Perhaps it’s near dinner time and eating pastry will spoil my appetite, or I am better off with a piece of fruit because that’s better for me and I am trying to lose weight.

To end on an upbeat note, one last comment. Two questions have often been asked, “If I don’t lose weight, will exercise still improve my health?” And, “Will I experience all the benefits of exercise if I remain overweight?” According to a major review of studies on the topic of exercise among overweight individuals, researchers at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas concluded that, on balance, exercise is more important than body weight to maintain good health. Exercise physiologist Dr. Steven Blair from the Cooper Clinic in Dallas concluded in the journal,

“Medicine and Science in Sports” that it is healthier for an overweight individual to perform aerobic exercise at least 3 times a week than for a normal weight person to lead a sedentary (no vigorous exercise) lifestyle. The take-away message here is this: no matter what you weigh, develop an exercise habit. Got that? Ok, now pass that pecan pie over here!

Quote of the day: “I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me”

(anonymous).