Stress Eating

When we think of the word "stress", most often we envision the emotional/physical response to untoward life events. The emotional components may include anxiety, a sense of panic, depression and a global sense of worry and doom. Physically, our "fight or flight" hormone response may cause us to feel palpitations, headaches, chest pains and poor sleep patterns.

Frequently, when we are under stress, we find ourselves reaching for food as a "treatment". Unfortunately, the food sources we seek during periods of stress are termed "comfort foods" and they tend to be very high in calories. Chips, cookies and other sweets are the most commonly sought out foods. Alcohol consumption may also be a response to stress for a number of people. A few beers or glasses of wine may seem to temporarily make the stress seem more bearable. But once again, the calories we consume with the alcohol will make weight problems even worse.

Linda and I have developed a quiz to allow someone to see just how much stress plays a role in his/her eating behavior. Check out: www.stresseaterquiz.com Invite your friends and family to go that site as well to perform an assessment as to whether stress is contributing to any weight issues they may have and to what extent.

Tomorrow I will discuss more about the chemical responses to stress as that relates to eating behaviors and what solutions we may have for you.

On a non-medicine note: I was at Wolf Trap Saturday night to see the musical "Rent". One stethoscope up for me...my daughter loved the show. Must be a generational thing...if I took her to see the old classic Guys and Dolls, I think she would have demanded to leave at intermission.