Comfort Food for Stress Relief? You Bet!
Whether we face a long-term problem, or experience a bad day, stress is a part of living. Naturally, eating is a part of living, as without food we don’t survive. The act of eating releases the hormone dopamine, which causes humans to want to eat again (think survival). For thousands of years, the stress of food revolved around producing and securing enough. In our society, the stress of food revolves around eating either too much or the ‘wrong thing.’ Why increase stress if we don’t have to? Food should and can be both nourishing and pleasurable.
Can foods elevate our mood? They sure can! I’m speaking of comfort foods. All around the world, each culture has its own version. Ramen noodles hit the spot in Japan, while matzo ball soup is the dish in Israel. In Great Britain folks choose fish and chips. Here in America, we love macaroni and cheese. Any way you slice it, comfort foods are a part of the human condition. 1
Comfort foods ought to be…well…comforting! They are supposed to inspire feelings of nostalgia and remind us of being loved and nurtured. In our weight-centric culture, snappy headlines link comfort foods to weight gain and the ‘obesity epidemic.’2 Stress-inducing language such as ‘indulge,’ ‘sinful,’ ‘cheat meal’ ‘guilt free,’ give comfort foods a bad rap.3 As a dietitian, I hear clients describe their feelings of guilt when they have comfort foods.
Well now… If the thought of comfort food fills us with guilt and shame it is no longer comfort food! Food exists to bring us nourishment as well as pleasure. Satisfying a craving for a favorite comfort food can be a simple act of self-care, so it ought to be stress free.
The daily practice of mindful eating can reduce the stress associated with comfort food. Mindful eating habits include regular meals, honoring hunger, eating slowly while avoiding distractions and respecting fullness. These habits of self-care assist by keeping us healthy and reducing stress.
Let’s dig a little deeper here. Aside from nourishment and pleasure, people may eat from compulsion or pressure. The difference lies in context and consequence.
An example of eating from pressure is being persuaded to eat something we really don’t want. For instance, parents may require their children to clean their plate in order to get dessert.
Emotional eating is a compulsive response to a stimulus, whether negative or positive.
For example: Suzie has just ended an annoying phone call with her mother. While brooding about her disappointing conversation, she pulls ice cream from the freezer and starts eating while standing over the kitchen sink. She didn’t really enjoy the ice cream because she was too focused on how upset she was. Afterwards, she felt guilty about ‘cheating on her diet.’
Let’s change the context: Cherrie’s work week was rainy and cold, and there was serious drama amongst her coworkers. As she drives home on Friday, she notices a strong craving for homemade cream of tomato soup and a gooey grilled cheese sandwich. Saturday morning, she heads to the market to get the ingredients. Cherrie enjoys her meal and begins to feel recharged. She satisfies her craving as an intentional act of self-care.
So, we can see the two contexts resulted in different consequences. Cherrie’s mindful act of planning brought her pleasure and reduced her stress. Suzi’s act of compulsion may have tasted good, but it increased her stress.
Like any other habit, eating mindfully takes practice. Some habits die hard, so be good to yourself. Focus on one new mindful habit for a few weeks before incorporating a new habit. To learn more about mindful eating habits talk with a registered dietitian or check out the following resources:
Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat: A Mindful Eating Program to Break Your Eat-Repent-Repeat Cycle by Michelle May, MD Megrette Fletcher, MS, CDE, RD. Available on Amazon.com or at Am I Hungry.com https://amihungry.com/
Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. Available for purchase from Amazon.com or at Intuitive Eating.org https://www.intuitiveeating.org/
3. https://more-love.org/2017/12/13/food-is-not-a-moral-issue/
Written by: Wendy S. Chatham, RDN, LD
Wendy became a Registered Dietitian after serving in the Navy. Currently she serves both as clinical health educator and hospital dietitian. She lives in St Mary's County with her husband and three cats.
