Causes of emotional eating
Emotional eating can be driven by our survival instincts. “Our bodies don’t recognise the difference between the stress of a lion chasing us and the stress of deadlines at work”, says medical doctor Aishah Muhammad. Dietitian Sophie Medlin explains, “when you’re stressed, you crave food that is easy to digest and releases energy quickly to help you fight or run away – sugar and carbohydrates”.
Almost two-thirds of Brits in the BNF survey say boredom is the main cause of their unhealthy lockdown eating. Research links boredom with eating for escapism, but there’s good news: it also associates it with increased consumption of healthy food, so long the food is “exciting”.
When we’re sleep deprived, research shows we may eat almost 400 calories per day more than when we sleep well, because we “draw on quick energy sources to keep us awake, usually carbohydrates”. “Being sleepy also increases hunger hormones”, says Medlin.
When we eat, we produce dopamine, the brain chemical responsible for reward and pleasure feelings. Some foods, particularly those high in fat and sugar, stimulate dopamine production more than healthier options. This can lead to the “dietary pleasure trap”, says Dr Douglas Lisle, psychologist and author of The Pleasure Trap: Mastering the Hidden Force that Undermines Health and Happiness. Your instincts tell “you to seek the most pleasure for the least pain and the least effort”, he explains, but the more you trigger the pleasure receptors in your brain, the less impact it will have.
