How to Recognize Emotional Eating

CLEVELAND – If you tend to turn to food when you’re sad or stressed, you’re not alone.

David Creel, PhD, psychologist with Cleveland Clinic, said emotional eating is very common.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s healthy to do.

“Food is accessible, it’s legal, it’s socially acceptable to do, and people even joke about it and make commercials about when you know we’re upset we tend to eat,” said Dr. Creel. “So, it’s very common, but at the same time, especially for people who might struggle with excess weight, it can be a pretty serious condition as well.”

Dr. Creel said emotional eating can cause weight gain, which in turn can put a person at risk for other issues, like type 2 diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and heart disease.

There are psychological concerns as well.

For example, they may experience guilt or shame after emotional eating.

So, what are some other ways to cope when upset?

Dr. Creel said if you can’t solve whatever issue you’re dealing with in that moment, consider talking with a friend instead.

Other options include doing some deep breathing exercises, going to therapy, or even working out.

It’s also important to practice self-compassion if you do wind up eating.

“What benefit do we have by beating ourselves up? People will say, ‘Well, if I’m not hard on myself, I’m not going to change.’ And actually, the literature supports the opposite,” said Dr. Creel. “When we’re able to show ourselves a bit of grace and self-compassion, we can say, ‘Hey, although I’m not happy I did this, I look at some of the factors that maybe led to it, and I can change that in the future.’”

Dr. Creel said sleep can play a big role with our appetites too.

If you’re not getting a good night’s sleep, it could make you hungrier and lead to emotional eating.

To help with that, he suggests trying to relax before bed and keeping a consistent bedtime.