Eating to deal with stress may pack on pounds

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Eating to deal with stress may pack on pounds

NEW YORK, Feb 04 (Reuters Health) - For those who reach for a cookie

when times get tough, stress may take a toll on the waistline, a Finnish

study suggests.

Researchers found that for people who said stress often drove them to

eat, the comfort food of choice tended to be greasy, salty or sweet. Not

surprisingly, such " stress-driven " eaters, particularly women, weighed

more on average.

Dr. Jaana Laitinen, of the Oulu Regional Institute of Occupational

Health, and colleagues report the findings in the current issue of

Preventive Medicine.

The researchers looked at 5,150 individuals at four points in their

lives--birth and ages 1, 14 and 31. At age 31, the participants' body

mass index, eating habits and methods of coping with stress were

studied. Those who said they often or sometimes tried to make themselves

feel better by eating and drinking were designated as stress-driven

eaters.

Laitinen's team found that these individuals were more likely than

others to frequently eat pizza, hamburgers, sausages and chocolate. They

also drank more alcohol, on average, according to the report.

For both men and women, body mass index--a measure of weight, taking

height into account--was higher among stress-driven eaters than others.

For women, obesity was associated with eating to cope with stress.

Men were more likely to eat in the face of stress if they were single,

divorced or frequently unemployed. The tendency was also seen in men

with academic degrees--which is surprising, the researchers note, since

higher education is often linked to lower rates of obesity. They

speculate that the young men in this study may be more susceptible to

stress caused by on-the-job demands compared with older, more

experienced workers.

Among women, those who felt a lack of emotional support in their lives

had a greater tendency to eat to cope with stress, the report indicates.

The researchers conclude that efforts to prevent or treat obesity should

address the ways in which people cope with stress.

" Programs aimed at preventing and treating obesity, " they write, " should

cover the way in which people deal with emotions, ways of achieving

greater emotional support, and strategies for handling stress caused by

unemployment or work. "

SOURCE: Preventive Medicine 2002;34:29-39.