If you run to the fridge or pantry when you are upset or feel down, you are not alone. It is very common for people to turn to food for comfort as a way of coping with personal struggles or big, difficult things. When you eat in response to the emotions you experience, that is emotional eating. Almost every person does it at some point. The body needs food to survive, so it makes sense that eating ignites the brain’s reward system and makes you feel better. 

When emotional eating becomes habitual and you have no other ways to cope with feelings, it can become a problem. Eating does not address the core issue, no matter how it makes you feel in certain moments. If you feel stressed, bored, lonely, sad, tired, or anxious, food will not fix those feelings. The unfortunate reality is that the cycle of turning to food to cope can trigger feelings of shame and guilt, which are more difficult feelings to deal with. 

It is hard to get away from food, as it is the center of so many things that you do. Food is celebratory, but you can also make food for someone going through a rough time to show you care. It is only natural to have an emotional relationship or connection with food. But you want to be able to make conscious decisions about when, what, and how you eat.

What Causes Emotional Eating? 

There are numerous reasons that trigger the urge to eat. The most common external reasons for emotional eating can be: 

• Health issues
• Work stress
• Relationship issues
• Financial worry

It is more common for people who follow restrictive diets, or have a history of restrictive eating, to eat emotionally. Other potential causes can include:

• Emotion dysregulation (the inability to manage emotional responses)
• Lack of introspective awareness (realizing how you feel)
• Reversed hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) stress axis (under-active cortisol response to stress)
• Alexithymia (lacking ability to understand, process, or describe emotions)

Is Emotional Eating An Eating Disorder?

On its own, emotional eating is not an eating disorder. That said, it can be an indication of one and potentially lead to the development of an eating disorder. Disordered eating can look like:

• Labeling foods as “bad” or “good”
• Frequent dieting or restrictive eating patterns
• Irregular meal timing
• Being rigid with food choices
• Feelings of guilt or shame after eating foods you view as “unhealthy”
• Eating in response to emotions as opposed to hunger cues
• Obsessive thoughts about food that interfere with your daily life

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics states that eating disorders are diagnosed when a person’s eating behaviors meet certain criteria. A lot of people have irregular eating behaviors, but they don’t meet the criteria for eating disorders. It should be noted that you do not have to develop an eating disorder to seek help. Everyone deserves to have a good relationship with food. If you think that you may have disordered eating behaviors, speak with a mental health expert or dietitian to help your situation. 

Emotional Eating vs. Physical Hunger

You need food to live, so it is very natural to need food and desire certain textures or tastes. How do you tell the difference between emotional and physical hunger cues? It can be tricky because you can occasionally experience a combination of both. Here are some clues to help you tell the difference: 

• Emotional hunger comes on suddenly.
• You may not notice fullness when you eat emotionally. It does not prevent you from wanting to eat more.
• Emotional eating is triggered by the need to comfort yourself. 
• Physical hunger develops slowly over time.
• You feel the sensation of fullness and take that as a cue to stop eating when you are not eating emotionally. 
• Physical hunger is tied to the last time you ate, not how you feel. 

Are You An Emotional Eater?

People who experience emotional eating may feel:

• An urge to eat even when they are not physically hungry
• Out of control around certain foods, especially snacks
• Food is calming or rewarding
• An urge to eat when they experience powerful emotions

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To fast is to abstain from all or some kinds of food or drink. Fasting has been practiced in many religions for thousands of years. Water fasting is a type of fast that restricts all foods and beverages except water. In recent years, it has become a popular way to lose weight quickly, but this practice offers several other health benefits. That said, there are some risks involved, so a water fast may not be suitable for everyone. 

Several studies found that water fasting may reduce the risk of chronic diseases and stimulate autophagy, a process that helps the body break down and recycle old cell parts. Human studies on water fasting are quite limited, so more research is necessary to determine the full benefits. When the body perceives environmental stress, such as restricting food, it adjusts activity of genes relevant to defending the body from stress. That changes that occur truly depend on how long you fast. 

What Is A Water Fast?

A water fast is a type of fast during which you cannot consume anything besides water. Typically, a water fast lasts 24-72 hours and you should not follow a water fast that lasts longer than 72 hours without medical supervision. The main reason that people engage in a water fast is to improve their health. Popular diets like the lemon detox cleanse are modeled after a water fast, but you get to consume a mixture of lemon juice, water, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper during that detox.

How To Do A Water Fast

Although there are no scientific guidelines on how to start water fasting, it is relatively straightforward. People with gout, types 1 & 2 diabetes, or eating disorders, in addition to older adults, pregnant people, and children should not do a water fast. If you have never done a water fast before, you should spend three to four days preparing your body beforehand. Eat smaller portions for your meals or consider eating intermittently in the days leading up to your fast. Most people generally drink two to three liters of water per day during a water fast. It is possible to feel weak or dizzy during this time, so try to do it when you have days off and can rest. Read on to learn more about the benefits. 

May Help Reduce Blood Pressure

According to medically supervised water fasts, people with high blood pressure were able to lower blood pressure levels. In one study consisting of 48 obese or overweight people, water fasting for an average of 17 days under medical supervision reduced systolic blood pressure. Another review found that water fasting significantly reduced blood pressure levels and body weight in people with high blood pressure. Although more research is necessary to evaluate whether or not short-term water fasts reduce blood pressure, initial research is promising. 

May Reduce The Risk Of Chronic Diseases

Some evidence indicates that water fasting may reduce the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease, certain cancers, and diabetes. Research suggests that water fasting may protect that heart from damaging free radicals. Additionally, a 2013 study followed 30 healthy adults who did a water fast for 24 hours. After the fast, they experienced significant reductions in blood triglycerides, a risk factor for heart disease. Several animal and human studies found that water fasting may suppress genes that aid the growth of cancer cells. 

May Promote Autophagy

Autophagy is an integral mechanism for maintaining optimal health. During this process, the body recycles cellular components, like amino acids, to make new proteins and mitochondria, which ultimately makes new energy for the body’s cells. Several animal studies suggest that autophagy may protect against Alzheimer’s disease, certain cancers, and heart disease. Other animal studies consistently found that water fasting promotes autophagy, and that autophagy may extend longevity. All that said, few human studies on water fasting and autophagy exist, so more research is necessary.

May Improve Insulin And Leptin Sensitivity

Both insulin and leptin are hormones that affect metabolism. Leptin helps the body feel full, while insulin helps the body store nutrients from the bloodstream. According to research, water fasting may make the body more sensitive to leptin and insulin. Greater sensitivity ultimately makes these hormones more effective. Being more sensitive to insulin makes the body more efficient at reducing blood sugar levels. Higher leptin sensitivity may help the body process hunger signals more efficiently, which may reduce the risk of obesity. 

The Risks Of Water Fasting

Although water fasting may have certain benefits, it does come with some health risks. One of the risks is that you may lose the wrong type of weight. A water fast restricts calories, so you can lose a lot of weight quickly. Unfortunately, most of the weight you lose in the beginning comes from water, carbs, and even a small portion of muscle mass. You may also become dehydrated during a water fast, which sounds too strange to be true. The reason for that is because about 20-30% of your daily water intake comes from the foods you eat. If you drink the same amount of water and are not eating food, you may not have enough water in the body. Dizziness, nausea, headaches, constipation, and low blood pressure are common symptoms of dehydration. 

As mentioned earlier in this article, water fasting is not for everyone. People with gout, eating disorders, and types 1 & 2 diabetes should not do a water fast without first seeking medical advice. A water fast may aggravate these conditions and worsen symptoms.

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The beginning of the year is synonymous with weight loss, or health general health resolutions. There are many ways to attack your weight loss goals, but the most successful ones involve a combination of mindful eating and exercise. Naturally, you want to see results quickly and be proud of what you accomplish, so you step on the scale. While weighing yourself daily is one way to track progress, it may not be conducive to your goals. 

Many fitness experts and dietitians have firm stances about stepping on the scale. Some people feel that weighing yourself every day is the only way to stay on top of your plan and keep moving forward. Others believe that one weekly weigh-in is more helpful to your fitness goal. The answer may not be as cut and dry as you think, though. You don’t want to become obsessed with stepping on the scale, but you don’t want to avoid it either. We discuss how often you should weigh yourself below. 

How Often Should You Weigh Yourself?

Some people want to lose weight and others want to simply maintain their current weight. There is no specific rule; rather, it’s more about what tactic works for you. As a general rule, it’s best to weigh yourself one to two times per week. For the most accurate results, weigh yourself in the morning before you eat breakfast. The reason for this is because weight can fluctuate from morning until nighttime, depending on what you eat or if you exercise.

Some people prefer to get on the scale every day, which is acceptable for certain, motivated people. Other people who feel self-conscious about their weight, and are not aware of day-to-day weight fluctuations, may not benefit from everyday weigh-ins. In fact, it may do them more harm than good.

Pros of Weighing Yourself Daily

If you go in for a physical or general check up, you step on the scale so the doctor can note your weight. If you only see your doctor once or twice a year, your current weight may not be what you think it is. Although your weight is just a number, it can be an indicator of overall health. 

Keeps You Accountable

Regular weigh-ins can help with accountability, especially if you are participating in a weight loss program. Daily weight monitoring can keep you on the right path, and it helps you track your progress or patterns. Not only do daily weigh-ins create awareness, but they also help you recognize if you hit a plateau. When this happens, you know that you have to change up your strategy.

Motivational

It’s very exciting to see the pounds fall off from one day to the next. Daily weigh-ins may validate the fact that your hard work is paying off. In this sense, stepping on the scale every day can be a motivational tool. The number on the scale is an inspiration to make healthy choices for the rest of the day.

Cons Of Weighing Yourself Daily

You may not want to weigh yourself every day, or as often, because it’s not a tool that aids your progress. Many people find that daily weigh-ins have a negative impact on mental health, and may even encourage eating disorders or depression. 

It May Be Misleading

The scale may say one number in the morning and a different number several hours later. What’s the deal with that, right? Well, weight naturally fluctuates over the course of the day. Fluid intake, salt intake, or hormonal changes can all influence the number on the scale. Some people can vary up to five pounds per day, which is why stepping on the scale daily may not be the right decision for your body. The scale also doesn’t distinguish between fat and muscle, which you may gain if you work out regularly.

It May Ignite Unhealthy Behaviors

If you don’t see the pounds drop from one day to the next, your mental health may suffer. It’s very easy to obsess about weight, which is harmful if you have a history of eating disorders. If you are unhappy with the number on the scale, it may ruin your mood for the rest of the day. In this situation, daily weigh-ins are not conducive to mental health. Weighing in every day may also create stress, which be a detriment to your diet and energy levels. 

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