By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    headphones can create health problems
    The Harmful Health Effects of Using Headphones
    September 24, 2021
    Headache causes
    4 Causes Of Headache You Probably Didn’t Know About
    December 28, 2021
    follow these steps to recover from your injury
    What Steps Should You Take to Recover More Quickly from an Injury?
    April 12, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Hacking HIPAA
    June 25, 2013
    VIVUS, Inc., Presses the Case for Obesity Drug Qnexa, Market Success
    October 18, 2011
    incentives and healthcare
    The Real Price of Incentives: Loss of Trust
    July 26, 2013
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Learn About Anxious Eating And How To Stop It In 5 Steps
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Health care > Learn About Anxious Eating And How To Stop It In 5 Steps
FitnessHealth carePublic Health

Learn About Anxious Eating And How To Stop It In 5 Steps

MyBlogs
MyBlogs
Share
6 Min Read
SHARE

  How many times have you eaten some version of a fried potato only ten minutes after a meal? How many times have you found yourself looking through the snack pantry and forgot how you got there? We all do it. It is normal to become overwhelmed by emotions and seek the comfort of a chip. In fact, there is a scientific reason for this. Anxiety increases certain hormones in our body and foods high in fat and sugar counteract their effect. An occasional anxiety-induced snack is fine. No one is perfect and self-soothing with food feels nice. But when eating is our regular response to anxiety, then it becomes unhealthy. What can you do when anxious eating has become a habit? So many things!

Contents
  • Real Hunger vs Anxious Eating
  • Identify the Trigger
  • Observe the Behavior
  • Change the Habit
  • Appreciate the Effort

Real Hunger vs Anxious Eating

The first step is to know the difference between real hunger and anxiety-driven cravings. When we’re hungry, we can usually feel a physical response. Our stomach growls or we feel tired. We usually get hungry slowly before we can’t take it anymore and need to eat something. With real hunger, we don’t crave specific foods. We are happy to eat a wide range of food to fill our stomachs. Once we are physically full, we can stop eating. Anxious eating usually happens suddenly. The need to eat becomes urgent. It is driven by a craving for a specific fatty food like ice cream or chips. With anxious eating, there is no limit on portions. We can inhale a whole pizza in one sitting and not even remember the first bite. And we always feel ashamed afterward.

Identify the Trigger

The next step is to identify what triggers our anxiety and food cravings. It could be a meeting with a manager or a conversation with a parent. It could be walking past the broken shoe rack that you’re supposed to fix but keep delaying. Next time you feel like anxious eating, figure out what just happened before the thought came into your mind. Be as specific as you can. For example, being bored is too vague. Maybe it is the anxiety of finishing your work early and not having anything to do the rest of the day disguised as boredom. Or the anxiety of not having as many hobbies as you’d like that’s disguised as boredom.

Observe the Behavior

Once we are triggered by our anxiety, there is a routine we follow to satisfy our cravings. We may remember a dish we saw on TV and look up restaurants that deliver it. Everything from ordering food online to walking to the office cafeteria is part of the satisfaction. Some of us may like to get creative, assembling a fancy ice cream sundae or melting cheese on nachos in the microwave. Others find themselves standing next to the pantry, staring at the options for numerous minutes. All of these behaviors are important to observe if we want to change our habits.

More Read

debunking-myths-myth3.png
Debunking Digital Patient Recruitment Myths for Clinical Trials: Myth 3
How Information Can Help Conquer Fear
Wash Your Hands? The Video is Watching
Health Wonk Review: The Week’s Healthcare News
Annual Healthcare Costs For Family of 4 Now At $22,030

Change the Habit

Now, it’s time to get to work. We want to stop using food to manage anxiety. Using the information on our triggers and behavior, we can apply different methods to change our anxious eating habits.

  1. The easiest and most difficult solution is to directly address the source of anxiety. Pay the electricity bill or trim the garden. If you know what’s causing your anxiety, just address it and end the pain.
  2. Time can also help. When you feel the anxiety come on, don’t do anything. Sit tight. Let it pass. Don’t act on it.
  3. Go through the anxious eating routine but don’t complete it. For example, go online and take your time browsing menus. Pick the pizza toppings and even go to the payment page. Or walk to your kitchen and look through the fridge and pantry. Spend all the time you want studying the options. Then don’t complete the action. See if you’re still craving food afterward.
  4. Replace the eating with an equally satisfying but less unhealthy option. Maybe call a friend to discuss your anxiety or read up on celebrity gossip.
  5. Find more long-term solutions to anxiety. Therapy, meditation and exercise are great ways to manage our daily anxieties.

Another great way to manage anxiety is to read inspirational words and thoughts by people from around the world who have overcome various limitations and addictions. You can read about them here at Treasure Quotes.

Appreciate the Effort

Whichever method you use, take some time afterward to observe your feelings. How great does it feel to work through the anxiety and not feel the shame of overeating? How relaxing does it feel to be in the moment and be there for yourself when anxiety tries to overwhelm you? The goal of this exercise is to take care of our health. Another proven method for improving mental health is practicing gratitude. When we thank ourselves for our efforts and feel the joy of accomplishing our goals, we become more motivated to work hard and grow. You can also check www.treasurequotes.com to find motivations to reduce anxiety as a whole which will help manage anxious eating.

TAGGED:anxietyeatinghabitsHaelth
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share
By MyBlogs
Follow:
Silvia Watson is a freelance content writer. She has written many good and informative articles on different categories. She is a featured author at various authoritative blogs in the health and fitness industry and currently associated as a blogger with  https://www.countingsheep.net/

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025
physiotherapist at work
How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
Health care
August 20, 2025
Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs
7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
Health News
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

Free Physician Rating and Medical Q&A Forum at Avvo.com

March 21, 2012

Driving Down the Real Cost of Healthcare: Pediatric and Teen Medical Homes

November 11, 2012
big data in healthcare
Health careTechnology

The Usage of Big Data Analytics in Healthcare

March 5, 2021
FitnessSpecialties

How To Find A Quality Chiropractor In Your City

September 30, 2021
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?