With the arrival of the holidays many people see altered their eating habits favoring the appearance of ’emotional hunger’that is, a false sensation of appetite “that It can appear at any time of the day and that we usually satisfy with foods that are low in nutrition and high in calories.“, explained to Europa Press the psycho-nutritionist of ‘tuMédico.es’, Andrea Arroyo.
Somehow, “holidays is a period where people people change lifestyle and eating habits. We disconnect from the work area, which leads to meeting other areas such as family or partner and, due to a different rhythm, it is more difficult for us to find each other “, she underlines.
Eating without feeling like it is linked to mood, “what can make us feel emotions that are linked to our eating habit. Through these customs, we may be able to channel emotions, be it boredom, joy or sadness,” the specialist detailed.
Factors that cause ’emotional hunger’
Situations of stress, irritation, internal conflicts that “lead us to eat unconsciously”social or work difficulties, as well as the tendency to be depressed are factors that can favor the act of eating emotionally.
“There are reasons of psychological origin that lead us to this, normally when we are more anxious, we experience something that we do not like, when we are sad or when we feel alonebecause we do not tolerate the fear of being alone well and bwe look for an escape or compensation mechanism“, he highlights.
For this reason, there are foods “that are capable of secreting substances in our brain that produce a sensation of well-being or pleasureHence, the food industries take advantage of it and design more attractive products for the consumer”.
On the other hand, the expert recalls that they are nutritionally high-calorie foods because they contain saturated fats and simple sugarsso they are not products of daily consumption although “It is not about there being prohibited foods“.
In the case of ice cream, a food widely consumed during the summer season, “it is a product that we would have to analyze to see its composition of ingredients because being a dairy derivative, it is a food for daily consumption, but it also usually contains fats of animal origin, sugars and secondary ingredients such as syrups”.
Consequences of metabolic origin
Depending on the frequency of the episodes and their significance, there is a greater or lesser severity derived from emotional hunger. “You can have it in an occasional and controlled way, but there can be situations of loss of control reaching binge eating episodes that lead to disorders such as bulimia nervosa“, warns the nutrition expert.
The main consequence of eating food without desire and little nutritious is the excess of weight that, indirectly, It can lead to metabolic and hormonal alterations such as diabetes, excess cholesterol, hypertension, reproductive problems or excess fatty acidamong other pathologies.
Emotional hunger can also affect mental balance because “it causes a feeling of guilt, a feeling of frustration and sadness. In addition, low self-esteem or using food as treats, punishments, or rewards can make it easier for a person to give in to emotional starvation.”
Education in healthy eating
Unlike physiological hunger, which appears gradually and is not selective, emotional hunger appears suddenly, at any time of the day, and is linked to a psychological factor. “Hunger due to human need is linked to regulated schedules and it is a divided diet, the emotional one appears, for example, when we have already eaten,” she added.
“Is It is very important to be aware that from a young age our habits are sedimented and we must receive a healthy diet and internalize that chocolate should not be eaten daily”, explained the expert in reference to parents teaching their children from an early age.
At the moment “when we pass into adulthood and there are these types of situations, You need psychological support and a divided diet with daily consumption foods such as fruits, vegetables, foods with flour or carbohydrates, among others“, has recommended.
One of the options for preventing or curbing emotional hunger is “creating a list of tasks that you can do and that give you well-being or motivation such as reading, walking, seeing the sea or calling a loved one. Any thought that serves to distract or stop boredom hunger.”
However, this depends on each person because “There is no effective method for everyone as it is very personal, we must analyze all the circumstances by which people have episodes of emotional hunger“, it is finished.