It happens to the best of us. From deadlines and late nights, to work stress, stress takes its toll on mood and health. Even though stress is a fact of life, it doesn’t make it any easier to deal with. Stress affects moods and emotions, as well as physical health. Furthermore, it can affect your eating habits and cause hormonal changes that can affect your body weight and blood sugar levels. Let’s look at some of the ways stress affects how you eat.
Stress Can Affect How Much You Eat
Everyone responds differently to stress. Some people use food as a salve and source of calm. They consciously or unconsciously eat more to get immediate gratification and a short-term improvement in mood. This tendency is known as stress eating or emotional eating and is one of the most common responses to stressful situations. But once that sugary snack is gone, the problem remains. Over time, this approach can lead to bigger problems like weight gain and a higher risk of obesity-related health problems.
But for some, stress can cause a dramatic decrease in appetite, resulting in undernutrition (eating too little). Ongoing worry and tension can also negatively affect digestion. Your nervous system plays a key role in food processing and digestion and when you’re stressed, the signals that control digestion are disrupted. If a person does not eat enough food during stressful times, they may lose weight as well as suffer from other health problems related to malnutrition (not eating enough).
Some people also crave salty food when stressed. Some sources claim these cravings are related to the body’s need for certain nutrients, such as magnesium and calcium. However, there’s no proof of this. There’s also evidence from animal studies that snacking on salty foods temporarily eases the body’s stress response.
Unfortunately, eating comfort food does not address the underlying problem–it only temporarily relieves stress by offering a short-term boost when you need longer-term stress relief. That’s why it’s important to have other ways to manage stress – walks in nature, meditation, yoga, or other mind-body approaches. You can even distract yourself with a favorite activity or listening to music before giving in to the temptation to snack when you aren’t physiologically hungry.
Stress Affects Food Choices Too
Stress can also affect the foods you eat and buy at grocery stores. You may unconsciously avoid the foods your body needs for optimal health–such as fruits and vegetables–and instead, choose convenience foods such as pizza or French fries. You might also crave sugary foods, like cookies, brownies, or candy.
Why do you crave more unhealthy food when you’re stressed out? One reason is that sugary foods elicit a dopamine response. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter in your brain that gives you short-term good feelings and a sense of reward. Dopamine is the reason people become addicted to smoking, gambling, and sugar. At least in rats, sugar is addictive and scientists believe the same may hold for other mammals including humans.
Cortisol Causes Sugar Cravings
The other reason cravings for sugary food increase is the effects of a stress hormone called cortisol, a hormone that a small gland above your kidneys called the adrenal cortex releases. Your body releases cortisol when it is under physical or mental stress.
Under the influence of cortisol, you experience changes in appetite and crave sugary food over healthier choices. Cortisol can lead to changes in other parts of your life: sleep, mood, memory, and even your ability to learn new things. When cortisol is high, it’s common to have trouble staying asleep, as cortisol has an activating effect.
Stress Can Create a Vicious Cycle
Stress eating can lead to weight gain, thereby creating further stress and loss of self-esteem. After overindulging in food, you might feel guilty–and this can lead to a negative body image. Plus, the sleep problems associated with stress can create a cycle of fatigue and increased appetite, which leads to further health issues. That’s why it’s important to break the cycle of stress and overeating.
Ways to Deal with Stress Eating:
Ask yourself what’s causing your stress. Are there any changes you can make to reduce stress in your life? If so, start making those changes now. If not, talk about it with someone who might be able to help.
Know Your Triggers
Identify your triggers for stress eating. Is there one time of day when you tend to eat too much? If a certain situation makes you reach for food. Identifying these patterns will help you avoid them in the future or plan ahead of time so that they don’t catch you off guard.
Don’t try to run away from stress — face it head-on instead. If there’s something that’s stressing you out, don’t run away from it; work through it with someone who will help you deal with the situation or at least talk through your feelings about it. If you feel stressed out, don’t panic and don’t ignore it. Instead, take time and learn how to manage your stress levels
Eat healthier food instead of junk food when you’re stressed out. This will help keep your blood sugar levels stable and prevent wild fluctuations that may lead to cravings for unhealthy foods.
The Bottom Line
Despite its common occurrence, stress eating can damage your health in the long run. It can lead to weight gain and obesity, which increases your risk of developing chronic conditions like heart disease and diabetes. It can also increase inflammation levels in the body and affect blood pressure levels, both of which are risk factors for heart disease and stroke.
References:
- “Why You Crave Salty Foods When You’re Stressed | Men’s Health.” https://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/a19523294/why-you-crave-salty-snacks-when-youre-stressed/.
- “Why stress causes people to overeat – Harvard Health.” 15 Feb. 2021, https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/why-stress-causes-people-to-overeat.
- “Tips to Manage Stress Eating | Johns Hopkins Medicine.” https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/tips-to-manage-stress-eating.
- Torres SJ, Nowson CA. Relationship between stress, eating behavior, and obesity. Nutrition. 2007 Nov-Dec;23(11-12):887-94. doi: 10.1016/j.nut.2007.08.008. Epub 2007 Sep 17. PMID: 17869482.
- Gemesi K, Holzmann SL, Kaiser B, Wintergerst M, Lurz M, Groh G, Böhm M, Krcmar H, Gedrich K, Hauner H, Holzapfel C. Stress eating: an online survey of eating behaviours, comfort foods, and healthy food substitutes in German adults. BMC Public Health. 2022 Feb 24;22(1):391. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-12787-9. PMID: 35209876; PMCID: PMC8868035.
- Yau YH, Potenza MN. Stress and eating behaviors. Minerva Endocrinol. 2013 Sep;38(3):255-67. PMID: 24126546; PMCID: PMC4214609.
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