Top 14 Ways To Prevent Stress Eating

It is not uncommon for individuals to seek comfort in a forkful of warm pasta, a delightful serving of ice cream, or the crunchy satisfaction of potato chips after a stressful day, which can provide a sense of relief. Food can serve as more than mere sustenance, and indulging in heavier meals or additional snacks, even when not necessarily hungry, is a completely natural human reaction.

If emotional eating during times of stress is hindering your wellness goals on a consistent basis, seeking guidance from a professional on how to cease stress eating would be the best course of action.

According to Christine Celio, Ph.D., who heads the psychology department at the Calibrate telemedicine startup, stress eating happens when your body is experiencing stress or hyperarousal, resulting in tense muscles, shortness of breath, and perhaps fatigue.

According to her, emotional eating encompasses a broader range of situations, such as consuming food due to stress, anxiety, depression, sadness, nervousness, boredom, or even to commemorate a positive event.

According to Cara Harbstreet, M.S., R.D., L.D., owner of Street Smart Nutrition, stress eating is typically triggered by an event or circumstance that leads individuals to find solace in food, ultimately causing distress to the person. Such behavior can negatively impact nutrient intake, strain budgets, and limit food options.

According to Celio, the initial step to address stress-induced overeating is to be mindful. By taking your time to recognize when you consume unhealthy foods, it allows you to evaluate why you opted for them and your emotional state.

She advises to pay attention to whether our hunger is genuine or we just have a desire to eat, and to consider how our day or mindset is affecting our eating habits. Recognizing the underlying cause of our behavior will aid in determining the appropriate course of action.

According to Harbstreet, it is important to treat yourself with kindness when dealing with emotional eating. As a human being, you are entitled to feel the gamut of emotions, such as stress, frustration, anger, fear, and so on. Although it may not be pleasant to confront these emotions, with practice, you can improve how you cope with them.

According to Celio, if you find yourself binge-eating – a condition characterized by consuming large quantities of food when not hungry, coupled with a sense of losing control, and feelings of guilt, shame, or depression – or if you resort to purging or excessive exercise to deal with overeating, it is advisable that you seek assistance from a mental health expert who can provide necessary support.

2. Write it down

Celio advises using a pen and paper instead of a device such as a phone or computer when under stress. This can greatly alleviate the burden. She suggests making a list of stressors and their reasons in bullet point form.

According to her, jotting down everything can provide clarity on the source of stress and help gain perspective. While snacking on pretzels cannot repair a broken faucet, watching instructional videos on YouTube might.

3. Sip on tea

According to Susan Albers, a psychologist at the Cleveland Clinic and author of the New York Times bestseller Eating Mindfully, having a cinnamon stick, a teaspoon of honey, boiling water, and a mug is sufficient to reduce sugar cravings during stressful situations.

Clinical studies have demonstrated that cinnamon can assist in regulating insulin levels. You may also consider adding a dash of cinnamon to your coffee in the morning or selecting a chai tea with a fiery kick instead of your usual English breakfast.

In case cinnamon doesn’t appeal to you, you can try sipping on another type of tea to unwind. Jessica Levinson, an expert in culinary nutrition, recommends relaxing with a cup of chamomile tea and meditating for a few minutes when feeling stressed. Although meditation and deep breathing are known to reduce stress levels, chamomile has proven to alleviate anxiety in adults who drink it.

4. Take a 15-minute walk

Levinson states that whenever she feels the need to eat due to emotions such as stress, boredom, or sadness, she chooses to go for a walk or run. According to her, exercising causes the release of endorphins that promote relaxation, and being outdoors helps alleviate stress naturally.

Celio concurs that engaging in moderate and consistent physical activity is among the most beneficial actions one can take for both their physical and emotional well-being.

She suggests finding an activity that brings you joy, like speed walking, using a stationary bike, performing planks, or dancing with abandon, and engaging in it daily for a minimum of 10 minutes, preferably 30 minutes. This routine enhances your emotional state, promotes restful sleep, fortifies your gut health, and provides an opportunity for personal growth and physical advancement.

5. Peel a clementine

According to Albers, peeling a clementine is a relaxing technique that requires full engagement of both hands, making it a mini-meditative moment. Additionally, the scent of citrus is known to induce calmness, potentially reducing the temptation to overindulge in free workplace donuts.

To attain the most relaxation possible, take your time peeling the fruit in a spiral motion while inhaling deeply to take in its aroma. Once you have finished peeling, consume each segment of the fruit gradually and luxuriate in the flavor of each bite.

Celio recommends a basic breathing exercise that can be beneficial if fresh produce is not readily available. Her advice involves inhaling for five seconds, retaining for seven seconds, and releasing for eight seconds, repeating the process at least six times. This technique requires just two minutes of your time but is effective in redirecting your thoughts and inducing relaxation.

6. Make avocado toast

According to Harbstreet, it is essential to select a snack that does not cause more stress. She suggests avoiding complex, gourmet dishes with difficult-to-find ingredients and sticking to simple, basic options. Also, opt for something that you find fulfilling.

Avocado toast is an excellent choice as it is both quick and fulfilling. According to Levinson, the combination of healthy fats, protein, and fiber in avocados helps to keep you feeling full, reducing the chances of indulging in something else. Additionally, the complex carbs found in whole-grain bread can enhance the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter responsible for feelings of well-being in the brain. We need not be told twice!

7. Check in with yourself

In order to avoid overeating, it can be beneficial to comprehend the underlying motivations driving this behavior. There may be several factors contributing to overeating, such as feeling anxious or unoccupied.

If you notice that you are consuming food too often or excessively in one meal, pause and examine your behavior. It is critical to ascertain if you are ingesting food due to hunger and the need for sustenance, or if there is something else at play.

Take a moment to analyze your emotions before you have a meal, particularly if you are feeling stressed, bored, lonely, or anxious. This pause and assessment can assist you in comprehending why you tend to overeat and potentially avoid overeating in the future.

Although it’s difficult, addressing overeating can be necessary, and seeking assistance from a professional may be required if it occurs frequently or if you feel ashamed or guilty after eating to an uncomfortable point. These symptoms may indicate a disordered eating pattern.

8. Remove temptation

Even though displaying a jar of cookies or a bowl of colorful candy can enhance the aesthetic of your kitchen, it can also result in excessive consumption. Keeping alluring edibles in plain view can induce frequent nibbling and overindulgence, even when you’re not hungry.

Studies indicate that when you see high-calorie food items, it activates the striatum in your brain that regulates the urge to act impulsively, possibly leading to stronger desires for food and overindulgence. Therefore, it is advisable to store particularly alluring foods like pastry, confectionery, chips, and biscuits in a pantry or cupboard to keep them out of your line of vision.

It is important to note that indulging in delicious food from time to time, even when not hungry, is not a problem. However, excessive consumption can have negative effects on both your physical and mental well-being.

9. Maintain a healthy meal schedule

It is recommended to stick to your regular eating routine while being home-bound. Whether you usually have three meals per day or two meals and a snack, it is advised to maintain the same schedule while working from home.

Even when your daily routine is disrupted, it is crucial to adhere to a consistent diet and avoid deviating from your normal eating habits.

It’s alright to adjust your eating habits to fit your changed circumstances. However, it’s advisable to adhere to a consistent dietary routine that suits your specific requirements and preferred mealtimes.

If you’re finding yourself constantly snacking and feeling disoriented, you can create a routine that ensures you have at least two main meals each day. Stick to this routine until you establish a comfortably consistent eating habit.

A crucial guideline in nutrition to avoid excessive eating involves not starving yourself. Frequently, excessively limiting your food consumption or consuming insufficient calories could result in indulging in high calorie foods and eating excessively.

During stressful times, it’s best to avoid following an extremely restrictive diet or starving yourself. Studies have indicated that such diets not only do not work for long-term weight loss, but they may also negatively impact your physical and mental health and contribute to increased stress levels.

11. Bring out your inner chef

While being stuck at home, there are some benefits to consider. One of them is that not having the choice to dine out encourages individuals to prepare meals at home, which has been proven to enhance overall well-being. A study involving 11,396 participants discovered that regularly consuming home-cooked meals was linked to higher consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Additionally, the study revealed that individuals who consumed homemade meals greater than five times per week showed a 28% decrease in the possibility of being overweight and a 24% decrease in the likelihood of having excessive body fat in contrast to those who consumed homemade meals fewer than three times per week.

Additionally, scheduling your meals in advance for a few days can serve as a productive activity and has also been proven to enhance the nutritional value of your diet while reducing the likelihood of obesity.

12. Prevent boredom

Once you have finished your daily tasks, being left with a surplus of free time can lead to boredom. Nonetheless, this can be prevented by utilizing your additional time efficiently. People often have interests they’ve been wanting to pursue or tasks that have been postponed due to hectic schedules.

The present moment presents an ideal opportunity to acquire a fresh expertise, embark on a home renovation venture, tidy up your living areas, enroll in an educational program, or begin a new leisure pursuit. Engaging in these activities not only wards off monotony but also probably boosts your sense of achievement and reduces anxiety.

13. Be present

The contemporary era is characterized by numerous diversions. The presence of devices such as smartphones, televisions, and social media all serve to divert your attention away from your routine activities.

Although catching up on your favorite TV show can divert your attention from stressful events, it’s crucial to reduce interruptions when having a meal or snack, particularly if you tend to overeat often.

If you typically eat while watching TV, using your phone, or working on the computer, try having your meals in a more peaceful setting. Direct your attention solely to your food and tune in to your hunger and satiety cues.

Practicing mindful eating can increase your awareness of eating behaviors and intake of food, thus reducing the likelihood of overeating. It is an effective means of paying greater attention to one’s eating patterns.

14. Practice portion control

It is a frequent practice for individuals to consume snacks directly from the packaging, increasing the likelihood of overindulging. As an illustration, scooping a serving of ice cream from a container and eating straight from it may result in consuming more than planned.

To counteract this, regulate the amount of food you eat by taking only one serving size onto your plate instead of consuming from bigger containers.