Today we start with a question: What happens in American movies when the main character is sad because her partner has broken up?
Bingo! I'm pretty sure you've thought of the typical scene of the girl on the couch having a good ice cream/donut/chocolate binge…
Would this be emotional eating? Yes, definitely.
So…
Is emotional eating good or bad?
Emotional eating is not only not bad, but it is good and necessary for survival. We need to eat every day to be able to live in a good state of health, so our hormones are responsible for making the act of eating give us instant pleasure. If it were not so, we would forget to do it or it would be very tedious.
Furthermore, food also becomes a social act, it reminds us of moments, people… and all of that is correct.
Emotion vs. attachment, the crux of the matter of emotional eating
So emotional eating is good and doesn't make you suffer. The problem comes with attachment: when we give food, and only food, the power to get us out of the mood we're in, to make us change the emotion we're experiencing.
The alarm bells should ring when food is our only resource for emotional regulation.
When we are “hooked” on a food on a recurring basis because it makes us overcome sadness or gives us more energy, for example, we are establishing an attachment relationship. And this is not bad because of the food itself, but because we are ignoring thoughts and emotions that should be addressed from other perspectives.
In this scenario, you will be nourishing your physical body, but perhaps it is your emotional or spiritual body that needs attention.
How to overcome food addiction?
- Go to therapy if you think it can help you.
- Move your body so that it doesn't stagnate
- Learn to live with your emotions and experience them fully. Emotions are not good or bad, they simply give us information based on what we need.
- Question your thoughts: many of them derive from stagnant beliefs or emotions and generate a constant dialogue in our head. From time to time, stop, observe them and question them.
- Practice gratitude daily
Why do I crave ice cream and not broccoli?
Returning to the example of the film, it is clear that the protagonist is replacing a negative emotion with food. But this is a one-off situation - in principle we do not leave it with the couple every week - in which we need immediate comfort.
There is no problem in eating ice cream, or whatever, at a time like this. But why do we always want something sweet when we are sad? The truth is that there are very clear reasons:
- On the one hand, eating carbohydrates gives us a fairly immediate energy boost and makes us feel better and stronger. Evolutionarily, in times of scarcity, sweet foods have been the most prized because they ensure survival thanks to the large amount of energy they provide.
- On the other hand, breast milk - especially during the first month of a baby's life - is especially sweet because it contains large amounts of lactose. Thus, unconsciously, when we are sad and turn to sweets, this taste transports us to a situation of peace, protection and unconditional love.
And here we come back to the beginning: it's okay for a food to make us feel this way, but the next time you suspect that you may be eating out of attachment, stop for a second and notice if your body and mind are trying to tell you that there is some emotion or thought that needs to be attended to.
And if after reflecting on it you still feel like having that ice cream, that piece of chocolate or that cookie, eat it without any remorse and enjoy it.
Remember that if you have any type of eating problem, or simply want to improve your habits and have better nutrition, you can support yourself with our psycho-corporal therapy in Barcelona.
Article written by Ignasi Sero
Restorative Yoga Teacher at Sincronia Yoga
