Psychological causes of overeating

Overeating refers to the consumption of an energy intake that is inappropriately large for a given energy expenditure, thus, leading to overweight. By many accounts, obesity now ranks as one of the greatest and most preventable global threats to public health.

The prime cause of being overweight is an energy imbalance resulting from chronic excessive caloric intake coupled with a deficit in caloric expenditure—in other words: too much food and too little exercise.

Overeating can be active and passive. Active overeating can be induced by a number of conditions: a cognate drive to consume above one's natural appetite (driven by either internal or external cues), a constitutional defect in appetite regulation (as occurs in many of the rare monogenic forms of human obesity), an inappropriate psychological response to stress, or a physical or pharmacological disruption of the hypothalamic satiety centre.

Links have been reported between psychosocial stress and the drive to eat, consumption of palatable foods, and fat gain, while individuals with higher cortisol levels report more frequent snacking.

Interestingly, the foods individuals choose when eating in response to stress tend to be hyper-palatable foods with a high energy density which are consumed even in the absence of hunger or homeostatic requirements.

In clinical practice, stress, depressed mood, anger, and irritability are the most commonly reported triggers of overeating. Negative “everyday” emotions are also more prominent in those with overeating compared to obese control participants.

The response to stress appears to have a highly individualised effect on food intake, though the degree of stress may impact on this with mild stress being more likely to prompt increased consumption.

Impulsivity or tendency to act without thinking has also been implicated in overeating and obesity. Study shows that 0verweight/obese individuals score higher on self-reported and behavioural measures of impulsivity, whereas those high in self-control have been shown to be less likely to give in to temptation and are more likely to maintain a healthy diet and engage in physical exercise.

Certain emotions can also lead to hedonic eating. In response to negative emotions such as grief, distress or reduced mood, for example, many people turn to food for comfort. Type 2 diabetes mellitus is often associated with negative emotional states, including mood disorder and depression, thus individuals with Type 2 diabetes mellitus may be more likely to eat for emotional reasons.
Psychological causes of overeating