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Ever heard of eating your feelings? That saying can hold more truth than you think. For many working class people, stress is a part of daily life. Eating is a necessary evil, but pairing the two can be problematic to your weight. When you are stressed, the hormone Cortisol can cause your body to crave snack foods more. The urge to consume carbohydrates- such as cakes, candy or chips- can suppress your intake of healthy, low calorie foods such as fruits and vegetables. Your regular eating patterns can also be thrown off by unnecessary snacking. How can you avoid the personal sabotage to your healthy lifestyle? There are several ways to identify and combat stress eating, or any other kind of emotional eating for that matter. Start by having a good nutritional foundation in the first place. By eating right on a regular basis, your body is better prepared for handling stress and keeping your emotions in balance. Even when affected by stress, if you are well educated and used to making healthy food choices, you are less likely to let your emotions come in the way of your decision making. Instead of reaching for a simple carbohydrate (things with lots of sugar), satisfy your carbohydrate craving with a whole grain or something with a lot of fiber. Complex carbohydrates fill you up more and keep you full for longer, so you are less likely to over consume calories. Also, since complex carbohydrates are digested slower, you won't experience the mood swings that come with a sharp increase in blood sugar followed by a crash. If you are already stressed by outside sources, don't let your eating habits make the problem worse. Have a snack handy. When you know you're going to be in a stressful situation or on a time crunch, come prepared! Stress hunger can hit fast, so always have a healthy snack available. When you are emotional AND hungry, you are more likely to make a poor food choice, so don't get caught without a plan. Some good snack ideas are pretzels, fruit, peanut butter crackers, baked chips, whole wheat goldfish, or carrot sticks. When you already have a snack, why do you need to go to the vending machine and get a candy bar? Having your temptations in sight can have a huge psychosomatic effect on hunger. Hide the foods you crave most of the time. Purchase cookies less or instead of having six flavors of ice-cream, have one at a time in your freezer. Try putting the soda on the top shelf of your pantry so your kids don't automatically see it. Stress eating is not something anyone can cut out all together. It is a way we handle our ever quickening world. Just be aware of what is going on and keep in mind these few changes you can make to create a healthier atmosphere for yourself. Author: Amanda Yazbek Amanda Yazbek is a Nutritionist for Camp Shane, the world's leading and longest-running weight loss camp for children and teens with locations in New York, Arizona and California. View Count: 122
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