Emotional Eating and Obesity: An Update and New Insights

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Obesity Research
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Emotional eating (EE) is frequently reported by adults with obesity.
• EE is associated with dietary intake and psychological symptoms.
• Understanding EE is crucial for obesity management.

Purpose of the Study:

• Synthesize research on the association between EE, BMI, dietary intake, and psychological symptoms.
• Describe underlying and maintaining factors of EE.
• Summarize evidence for behavioral treatments of EE in obesity.

Main Methods:

• Literature review and synthesis of existing studies.
• Analysis of factors influencing EE, including emotion regulation and learning principles.
• Evaluation of recent evidence for behavioral interventions.

Main Results:

• Adults with obesity frequently experience EE, influenced by emotion regulation and learning.
• Behavioral treatments, especially cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness-based approaches, show short-term efficacy.
• Limitations include EE measurement and overlapping intervention components.

Conclusions:

• Psychosocial factors are critical for understanding EE mechanisms and treatment in obesity.
• Further research is needed to clarify causal mechanisms of EE in obesity.
• Future work should inform the development of more effective EE treatments.