Most talk of eating disorders centers around anorexia, bulimia, and other disorders that cause extreme weight loss. But emotional eating disorders that cause someone to overeat can be just as dangerous and pose just as many health risks. Researchers at the Miriam Hospital's Weight Control & Diabetes Research Center recently conducted a study which sought to better understand the triggers of emotional eating disorders.

"We found that the more people report eating in response to thoughts and feelings, such as 'when I feel lonely, I console myself by eating,' the less weight they lost in a behavioral weight loss program... In addition, amongst successful weight losers, those who report emotional eating are more likely to regain..."

The team focused on an aspect of eating behavior called "disinhibition" which evaluates eating in response to emotional, social, or cognitive cues. There are two types of disinhibition - external and internal. External refers to things like social settings, while internal refers to feelings and thoughts. Overall, the team found that internal disinhibitions were a significant predictor of someone's weight loss or gain over time.

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Labels: pressures, behaviors, emotions

Posted By: Aspen Education Group