Stress Induced Eating
Constantly in daily life stress appears. Living in a very fast paced environment where everything is needed or wanted in an instant. Between having a family, going to school, and working a job or jobs there are many things in life that can cause a person to be stressed. In a world where you have to multitask constantly to keep up, stress is a given. With all of that our body has to deal with on a regular basis, overwhelming stress is not a good thing to have. Now people deal with stress in many different way, but most of us like to eat when we are stressed, regardless of what we are stressed about. Our body deals with stress in many ways which include, releasing certain hormones which either increase or decrease our appetites and it can also causes us to be addicted to food by activating our reward system. Now when our hormones or reward systems are activated our bodies tend to look for food to comfort us, which then leads to why stress eating can lead to obesity. Since people do react to stress differently, do men and women response to stress differently? Do men and women pick different types of food to eat when stressed?
Stress according to Nowson (2007), can be defined as "the generalized, non-specific response of the body to any factor that overwhelms, or threatens to overwhelm, the body's compensatory abilities to maintain homeostasis" (p. 887). There are multiple types of stressors that can cause a stress response. There are chemical stressors, physical stressors, psychological stressors or emotional stressors, physiologic, and social stressors. Chemical stressors are any stressors that effects your chemical balance, which includes acid-base imbalance and reduced oxygen supply. Physical s...
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... Amanda., Zellner, Dedra A. (2006). Food Selection Changes Under Stress. Physiology & Behavior, Volume 87 (Issue 4), Pages 789-793. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2006.01.014 Nowson, Caryl A., Torres, Susan J. (2007). Relationship Between Stress, Eating, Behavior, and Obesity. Nutrition, Volume 23 (Issue 11-12), Pages 887-894. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2007.08.008 Oliver, Georgina., Wardle, Jane. (1999). Percieved Effects of Stress on Food Choice. Physiology & Behavoir, Volume 66(Issue 3), Pages 511-515. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0031-9384(98)00322-9 Rolls, Barbara J., Shide, David J., Suzanne E., Weinstein. (1997). Changes in Food Intake in Response to Stress in Men and Women: Psychological Factors. Appetite, Volume 28 (Issue 1), Pages 7-18. Retrieved from
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"Emotions and Eating Behavior: Implications for the Current Obesity Epidemic." University of Toronto Quarterly Spring 79.2 (2010): 783-99. Web. Apr. 2014.
All in all, this book is a great read for those seeking to learn more about food and how it relates to all aspects of life and history as well as find that extra push in taking the initiative in improving one’s eating habits and lifestyle. It serves as an easy to follow introduction into a healthy relationship with food including with simple guidelines that are not too forceful or complex to understand.
2. Cohen, J. et al. Psychological Distress Is Associated with Unhealthful Dietary Practices. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 102:699-703, 2002.
However, stress affects how individuals put on weight. In the book “An Invitation to Health” the book discusses that stress can cause individuals to have poor eating habits. Whether it is eating on the run, skipping meals, not chewing your food properly which cause your stomach to work over time, or overeating. The book also explains that if you are to continue living this lifestyle you will have increased abdominal pressure. However, in Dr. Sapolski’s discovery he believes that stress can determine the way fat is distributed in the body. As a result causing more fat to out onto your
Food stamps are not the only solution available; for example, a person can decide to find multiple jobs to supplement their income. However, with multiple jobs come other obesity triggering factors. Multiple jobs increase a person’s stress level which in turn ra...
Scottt, Elizabeth. “Stress and Emotional Eating: What Causes Emotional Eating?”. Web. 07. June. 2010. http://stress.about.com/od/unhealthybehaviors/a/eating.htm
The Institute of Heartmath, (2012), childhood obesity and emotional eating, http://www.heartmath.org/free-services/articles-of-the-heart/childhood-obesity-and-emotional-eating.html [accessed 05 Nov 2013]
The human body is like a machine that needs fuel to be able to accomplish certain tasks. Too much fuel or to little fuel can have a great impact on how the machine runs. Food is the fuel that runs the human body. Making the right food choices is crucial to a person’s health. Making unhealthy food choices can lead to the development of chronic diseases such as diabetes or cancer. Along with making the right food choices, it is also important to eat those foods in proper portions. Every person is different, so their portions will also be different. There are several factors that influence a person to eat food. Such as hunger, emotions, environment, availability, family and many more.
One health-related topic that receives considerable attention concerns eating habits and the development of obesity. Biological, environmental, social, and psychological factors that influence eating are typically an aspect that is assessed with the discussion of obesity concerns in the United States (U.S.). Obesity is widespread and remains a prominent health issue in the U.S.. One of the ways overweight and obesity is defined entails the operation of the body mass index (BMI) of an individual. This study consists of how these factors have a direct correlation leading to obesity in many individuals nation-wide.
This research paper concerns how individuals perceive stress and the serious effect on their psychological thought process and physical and mental health and how they can cope with their anxiety driven thoughts. Research was gathered using printed material obtained at the Syracuse Bird Library, and also using various online sources and scholarly journals. One printed source written by Frank Campbell addresses the health effects stress can have on an individual while author Richard Lazarus explores coping mechanisms individuals can use to attempt to get rid of the their stress. Author Bruce G. Charlton in his publication in the Journal of Medical Ethics, claims that stress is an empty word, with little value and explains the origin of the Stress. Robert Lazarus explains the concept of stress along with the ambiguity associated with the word. Ruth O’Hara explains what situations causes stress. While authors Carolyn Aldwin and Sandi Mann discuss coping and how to alleviate stress.
Stress is the pressure or strain from an external situation. Stress can affect a person’s life from eating habits to sleeping patterns (e.g. eating disorders, irregular sleep patterns) (Myers et al., 2012). Approximately 83% of adults believe stress is a contributor to health related issues (e.g. heart disease, depression) (The Impact of Stress). Research conducted by Myers et al. reported 70% of students were affected by one or more stressors (e.g. financial, academic, health, relationships). Females reported being more stressed than males (Lin, Spector, & Shi, 2008; Myers et al.). Most females in this study reported their biggest stre...
Chronic stress may be a factor in cases of heart disease and obesity. Due to the type of hormones in the body being released or restricted Cholesterol levels have been known to increase in individuals with chronic stress. A person’s relationship with food can increase their chances of heart disease and obesity. When people are experiencing high levels of stress they may use food as a way to feel satisfied temporarily- whether they are hungry or not.
Selye, H. (1982). History and present status of the stress concept. In L.Goldberger & S. Breznitz (Eds). Handbook of Stress: Theoretical and Clinical Aspects. New York: Free Press.
One of the reason’s why I felt my nutrition needed to changes is because nutrition is a huge part of a healthy lifestyle, the way that we eat and what foods we consume can have a huge impact on our everyday lives. Nutrition plays a huge role in multiple facets of a person’s life energy, health, skin, weight, confidence, and more making having a good control on your eating habits extremely important. How we eat over the years and what foods we routinely choose to eat can eventually have a lasting effect on use and what we consider to be most appealing and appetizing at any given moment. Having these craving and routine habits makes eating, diet, and nutrition both a behavior and a lifestyle choice that can be changed over time with help from the theories learned in this class.
Stress is defined in the dictionary as “state of mental tension and worry caused by problems in your life”. Everyone encounters stress in their life caused by many different variables in life and we all cope with in different ways. The way one copes with the stress is how it can affect our body. Some take to working out, eating healthy, take breaks from what is stressing you out and getting plenty of sleep which are good ways to cope with it. Some take to other coping mechanisms that are not very great for the body. Some examples are stress eating, abuse of drugs and alcohol, bottling up the stress, and depression. These bad methods can cause serious damage to one’s health on the body.