On any (and all) kinds of quick weight loss programs, you need to be aware of how you treat food, and how it affects the positive and negative things that happen in your life.

We all know food can make us feel good. From infancy, we are taught that love and food are intertwined. A baby cries - we may feed it to calm it down; a child does well and is rewarded with a food treat; and of course seduction and food have been entwined since Creation – just think of Adam and Eve!

In later life we have a whole catalogue of food memories associated with holidays, celebrations and happy times, so it’s really no wonder that we equate food with positive feelings.

When emotionally stressed, some people strive to recapture those happy feelings by comforting themselves with food. It’s recently been shown that we are more likely to engage in emotional eating if our basic human needs - such as security, love and belonging - are unfulfilled.

Prolonged periods of depression and anxiety also tend to cause emotional eating, leading to cravings for sweet and fatty foods.

A Case Study

Many parents and grandparents mistakenly use food as a reward for positive behavior: ‘If you are a good girl or boy today you will get a treat.’ This strategy may create a lasting unconscious desire to reward oneself with sweet, high-calorie foods when under emotional stress.

This may develop into unhealthy eating habits, so that being overweight becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Aim to reward younger members of the family with non-food treats, such as a trip to a park, a treasure hunt or a physical activity. This will have a much more positive impact on their health.

Why People Eat Emotionally

People often find themselves trapped in a cycle of stress-eat-stress, feeling helpless to change. Significant weight gain can occur as a result. There may be unconscious reasons for this behavior. You may want to prevent other people getting too close, and feel that a layer of fat on the body may protect you. Or it can represent an attitude of needing to let go and be out of control when all other aspects of your life have to be neat and in order.

Emotional stress is real, and it doesn’t go away quickly or simply. However, recognizing it is the first step to taking action. If you feel you are susceptible to emotional stress, write down on a piece of paper every type of event in your current daily routine where you use food emotionally. Simply writing it down will help you become more aware of it, and ultimately help you overcome it. Once you know where any problems lie, it’s much easier to refrain from that habit, and therefore remain focused on your quick weight loss diet.