Most people are well acquainted with the knowledge that overeating is unhealthy and can make you vulnerable to various complications, but where do you go to learn what causes lead to these habits? This article will be looking at some of the factors that trigger emotional eating and sharing some tips on how you can avoid these triggers.
Trigger Foods
Some foods trigger powerful cravings and memories that send a person into a state where they don’t consider what they are putting in their body. Strong emotional, or cultural identification with specific foods can begin at an early age, so these habits can become very deeply embedded into an individual’s identity. Marketing research companies spend billions of dollars learning how to connect the emotions of the consumer to their products, so thinking about the kinds of food you consider are very important. One extremely effective tool that you can use to help you find out what is happening with your eating habits, is to begin keeping a journal.
Trigger Emotions
As you write what kind of foods you eat, it’s also good to make a note of how you’re feeling at the time of the craving. Strong emotions of any kind can affect how you chose to go about your eating habits during meal time, and it’s important to note that they can be both positive and negative emotions. When a person is emotionally eating, it frees the mind of the burden of focusing on issues and allows for an escape. It can also provide a pleasurable experience that allows the eater a feeling of being rewarded. Studies have shown that food can light up the same areas of the brain that reacts in drug addiction, so that means that serious thought and planning must go into combating these habits.
Trigger Environments
Last, and certainly not least is your environment. This can cover a wide variety of variables such as who you are spending time with, where you are located, and what kinds of events are taking place. Some people find public situations highly stressful, while some others may find alone time to be stressful. Overeating often takes place when the subject is alone, but every case is different. This is another reason why keeping a journal can be very helpful because it enables and empowers you to take an honest look at your triggering factors. Recording this information can expose a pattern and help you overcome the difficult habit of emotional eating.
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