We are what we eat

It has long been known that diet is closely related to people's emotional well-being. Our lifestyle directly affects us emotionally, and our feelings influence our willingness to eat one type of food or another.

When there is a nutrient deficit in our body, it sends us signals to make us realise that something is not quite right. Sometimes, however, these signals refer to the need to eat foods high in fat or sugar that are not particularly recommended. Often, when we feel the constant urge to eat this kind of food, we may also find ourselves in some kind of emotional imbalance.

How we feel affects the way we eat, and negative moods influence the onset and maintenance of eating disorders. When the reason we seek food is not hunger but to alleviate a negative emotion, we feed emotionally. We seek comfort through something that quickly produces a pleasant sensation, and which is also easy to obtain. However, its effect is short-lived, and the pleasure it produces disappears as quickly as it is obtained.

Stress, anxiety and depression are often associated with the consumption of fatty foods. Many of these foods trigger the release of serotonin in the brain, the so-called "happy hormone". However, its effect is not sustained and fades quickly.

Not only do emotions affect the way we eat, but our diet also influences how we feel. It is a two-way relationship between emotion and food. A healthy diet helps us to feel good and to be able to better control our emotions in times of stress or imbalance. It is not about depriving ourselves or radically restricting the consumption of sweets, but about knowing how to dose ourselves and take them from time to time without abusing them.

Diets based on foods high in carbohydrates, sugars or fats make us feel more tired, unmotivated and sad. This in turn reinforces the continued consumption of these foods, as the sensation of eating them is pleasant, but in the long term they can be accompanied by feelings of shame or guilt, and emotional imbalances.

The consumption of sweets is associated with more depressive or anxious moods, while the consumption of vegetables and foods rich in health-promoting nutrients is associated with people with greater emotional control and stability.

Thus, we can conclude that emotional well-being, something that has been talked about a lot lately, is a condition that, in relation to food, is obtained through consistency in eating a healthy diet, something that may take some effort at first, but that once integrated into our routine and way of life will lead to positive changes in the way we manage and cope with negative emotions.

Alimentación y emociones: un vínculo complejo (directoalpaladar.com)

Conoce la relación entre las emociones y la alimentación (lamenteesmaravillosa.com)

¿Por qué cuando estamos tristes comemos más grasas? (abc.es)