When You Shouldn't Eat If You Want to Lose Weight
Miscellaneous / / July 11, 2022
If you make this mistake, gaining extra weight will be easy.
The results of scientific research blur the boundaries of useful and harmful for the figure. Today, a hearty breakfast, dinner until six in the evening, and clearly defined meal intervals are no longer considered a prerequisite for successful weight loss and weight maintenance.
At the same time, there are some factors that can affect the set of extra pounds, regardless of the time of day. We are talking about moments when a person is upset, angry, feels guilty or experiences other negative emotions. In other words, it is in a state of psychological stress.
Why Eating Under Stress Can Affect Weight Gain
There are two main factors due to which eating during stress can negatively affect the figure.
Negative affect can cause overeating
Psychogenic overeating is violationD. L. Rosenbaum, K. S. White. The relation of anxiety, depression, and stress to binge eating behavior / Journal of health psychology eating behavior in which a person from the disorder eats much more than usual. Then he may feel guilt and shame, which only worsens the condition.
As a rule, a person at such moments does not experience real hunger and chooses not healthy food, but some kind of junk food, saturated with fats and sugar.
Psychogenic overeating is quite common, it can exist both in the form of single episodes and in a chronic form. The latter leads to significant weight gain.
According to cognitive avoidance theory, people useD. L. Rosenbaum, K. S. White. The relation of anxiety, depression, and stress to binge eating behavior / Journal of health psychology food to drown out negative emotions. The process of chewing food, coupled with taste sensations, shifts attention away from upsetting thoughts.
This works quickly, but not for long: as soon as the meal is over, emotions return, or even exacerbated by guilt from overeating.
Stress can disrupt hormone and peptide metabolism
So far, this topic has only been studied in animals. Nevertheless, it can be assumed that eating under stress is more dangerous for the figure, not only because of the choice of foods and portion sizes.
In one experimentC. K. IP, L. Zhang, A. Farzi. Amygdala NPY Circuits Promote the Development of Accelerated Obesity under Chronic Stress Conditions / Cell metabolism The scientists divided the mice into two groups: some were simply fed a high-fat diet, and the second was provided with stressful conditions in addition to such a diet. Animals from the second group accumulated significantly more fat.
It turned out that neuropeptide Y (NPY) is to blame. This 36 amino acid chemical is released by nerve cells in different parts of the brain and plays an important role in regulating eating behavior, appetite and obesity.
Scientists have found that the combination of stress and high-calorie foods increases the production of NPY in the central amygdala, a brain structure that is, among other things, responsible for the stress response.
Normally, the hormone insulin controls the release of this peptide, but under conditions of stress, nerve cells lose their sensitivity to it, so that appetite increases and energy costs decrease.
To test whether NPY is really to blame for the severe obesity in mice, the scientists "turned off" its production by injection. After that, the subjects accumulated significantly less fat, despite the persistence of stress and excess calories.
Of course, we must take into account that the experiment was carried out on mice. However, in humans, NPY playsx. Lin, Q. Qi Y. Zheng. Neuropeptide Y genotype, central obesity, and abdominal fat distribution: the POUNDS LOST trial / The American journal of clinical nutrition important role in the mechanisms of weight gain as in other mammals, and chronic stress increases1. J. Mouchacca, G. R. Abbott, K. Ball. Associations between psychological stress, eating, physical activity, sedentary behaviors and body weight among women: a longitudinal study / BMC Public Health
2. K. A. Scott, S. J. Melhorn, R. R. Sakai. Effects of Chronic Social Stress on Obesity / Current obesity reports risk of becoming obese.
How to avoid overeating when stressed
There are several strategies that can help you avoid eating negative emotions.
1.Learn to differentiate physical hunger from emotional hunger
If you're angry, bored, or feeling guilty, ask yourself if you're really hungry before eating.
AT book “My best friend is the stomach,” nutritionist Elena Motova tells how physical hunger differs from emotional hunger. The first occurs a few hours after eating, increases gradually and disappears after eating. It includes a variety of signals empty stomach, reduced concentration and performance.
Emotional hunger appears suddenly, like a whirlwind, regardless of how long ago the last meal was. At the same time, a person craves certain products, but does not experience satisfaction from them. He still feels bad and wants something else.
If you manage to detect emotional hunger, go to the next paragraph.
2. Find your ways to deal with stress without food
Various activities are suitable for dealing with stress: creativity and hobbies, walking, meditation and yoga, massage, communication with loved ones, reading, music, keeping a diary.
If you feel like eating without real hunger, try some of the above and see how your condition changes.
3. Don't beat yourself up if you can't distract yourself
Guilt after overeating is just as negative an emotion as those that led to the binge episode. Scolding and punishing yourself with diets and workouts, a person only increases stress, which does not help weight loss at all.
If you haven't noticed your emotional hunger until the amount of food you've eaten is heavy, show yourself compassion.
Do not plan strict diets and exercises - better think about what interesting and enjoyable things you can do to relax. Next time use your ideas in a moment of psychological stress.
Read also🧐
- How I got rid of compulsive overeating and came to a healthy diet
- 6 causes of overeating and how to deal with them
- “It’s hard to eat consciously when food porn is constantly slipped into us”: an interview with psychologist Svetlana Bronnikova
Best deals of the week: discounts from AliExpress, LitRes, Christina and other stores