Eating psychology: definition and applications

Two health disciplines united in pursuit of greater well-being for patients.

Psychology and nutrition are two disciplines that are linked, just as psychology and sport are linked.as are psychology and sport.

That is why, in recent years, there is a growing awareness of how food affects our emotional state or how our emotional state affects what we eat.

In this article we will review the most important aspects of the psychology of eating and explain what it is and how it affects our emotional state. and explain what it consists of and in which areas it is applied.

The psychology applied to food and its usefulness

What is certain is that if a positive mindset affects optimal sports performance, the management of emotions is a determining factor when it comes to following a dietary plan.. But psychological factors are not only important for diet adherence (if our goal is to lose weight since obesity is affecting our health), but psychology also provides knowledge on how we can maximize the eating experience.

In fact, eating is not only an instinctive act, but the five senses come into play as well as certain psychological aspects such as expectations, memory or emotions. This is causing more and more importance to be given to neurogastronomy, since eating with the palate is an act of the brain, and each individual has a unique and subjective interpretation of flavors.

In this sense, food psychology is not only applied to improve the well-being of people, but restaurants, for example, make use of environmental psychology to make customers more satisfied with what they eat and even consume more.

Diet and psychology: what is the relationship?

The relationship between nutrition and psychology becomes especially important in those cases in which an individual has serious difficulties in being able to meet goals, because many times a person may have high motivation at the beginning, but as the weeks go by, adherence becomes more difficult.

One of the professionals best known for his research and for providing scientific data on psychological tricks that can be very useful when it comes to losing weight is Brian Wansink, from Cornell University. Such is his fame that he has even been recruited by the White House to develop nutritional and dietary guidelines in the United States.

Many individuals are probably unaware of the importance of the psychology of eating, but scientific research has shown that exercise and dieting are not enough to maintain long-term results. In fact, in cases of obesity, there is a high failure rate if you do not follow a diet, there is a high percentage of failure if psychological variables such as emotions, expectations or beliefs in theexpectations or beliefs in the treatment are not taken into account.

• You can go deeper into this subject in our article: "Emotions are the main obstacle to weight loss".

Mental health and nutrition

Emotions, undoubtedly, are key in the adherence to a diet, and that is why experts recommend comprehensive treatment in cases of obesity. That is to say, especially in these cases, the presence of a psychologist is indispensable..

Few doubt the importance of physical training and nutrition in these cases, but the figure of the psychologist is essential as well as that of the physical trainer and the nutritionist, because obesity is associated with many psychological problems such as depression, binge eating disorder or anxiety.

Therefore, this varied and complex context requires a treatment in which a multidisciplinary program should be prioritized, rather than separate solutions. In this sense, cognitive behavioral therapy has proven to be very effective, and you can check it out in our article: "The application of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in the treatment of obesity".

Emotional eating

It is common that many people are educated in nutrition and know what to eat and what not to eat, however, are unable to eat healthily despite their desire to do so..

This often happens not only because of irrational beliefs or unrealistic goals, but also because of a low mood. People, when we are depressed, stressed or anxious, eat uncontrollably: either we choke when we are sad or we eat little and badly in stressful moments.

Now, if our mood affects our food, our food also affects our mood**. When we are more nourished we enjoy greater attention, concentration and energy level**, but in addition, some experts claim that some nutrients such as tryptophan (precursor of serotonin, known as the happiness hormone) also make us feel better. Tryptophan is found in some foods such as cheese, chicken or chocolate.

Neurogastronomy: what it is

The latest trend in food psychology is what is known as neurogastronomy because, in reality, eating with the palate is an act of the brain. In this sense, neurosciences applied to food are also a reality..

Thus, scientific and technological progress has allowed us to know in greater depth the processes that develop in our body and mind around food, because eating is not only an instinctive act, but the five senses come into play, as well as certain psychological aspects such as expectations, memory or emotions.

Food provides us with the nutrients necessary for our organs to function properly. However, we also eat for other reasons, for example, when we get together with friends to enjoy a great evening.

• If you want to know more about neurogastronomy, you can read our article: "Neurogastronomy: eating with the palate, an act of the brain".

Some scientific data provided by psychology

Many studies have been carried out on the influence of psychology on eating. Some of these studies state that:

• The ambient music of the place The ambient music of the place where we eat has a great influence on how we value the taste of food.
• The color red increases appetiteThe color red increases appetite, which is why brands such as McDonald's, Pizza Hut, KFC and Wendy's use this color in their logos and facilities.
• The color of the container in which food and beverages are served and beverages enhances the flavor or aroma.
• In a relaxed and more and more sophisticated people eat less
• In a more stimulated environment people eat faster. faster.
• Rock music in the background makes us eat faster and therefore consume more calories.
• Bright light and yellow color makes us eat faster and more food.
• Well-lit restaurants make us order a lot of junk food.
• Disturbing noises make us eat faster, in an unpleasant and uncontrolled way.
• Watching television distracts us and makes us eat more.