Overcoming Emotional Eating
Tacking Stress-Induced Weight Gain in Autoimmune Disease
Stress, boredom, and exhaustion can all set the biochemical stage for emotional eating. Fortunately, nutrients can help relieve stress and prevent emotional eating.
The stress of living with an autoimmune disorder can lead to a pattern of emotional eating as a form of self-medication and subsequent weight gain. Emotional eating typically consists of consuming certain foods, particularly high-glycemic and high-fat foods that raise levels of brain neurotransmitters such as serotonin, along with its amino acid precursor tryptophan, that are depleted during stressful periods. Unfortunately, weight loss programs rarely address the biochemistry or psychological processes that lead to weight gain. However, a recent study conducted by the Life Extension Foundation targeted emotional eating and showed how it can be prevented by using nutritional supplements.
What is Emotional Eating?
Scientists use the term emotional eating to describe the way many people self-medicate or cope with negative feelings such as depression, anxiety, stress, and boredom. In some cases, emotional eating is also triggered by fatigue and exhaustion. Studies confirm that people under chronic stress tend to gain weight because of both related endocrine changes and misdirected coping strategies that focus on food for relief.
Besides stimulating serotonin production, carbohydrate-rich, protein-poor meals stimulate the production of the pleasurable endorphins and the feeling-of-reward-inducing chemical dopamine. As a short-term solution, emotional eating provides relief. But over time, emotional eating leads to weight gain, nutrient deficiencies and other health problems.
The Nutrient Solution
The Life Extension Foundation’s study focused on a program of light exercise and a combination of the following three nutrients, which are found in their new Natural Weight Loss product:
- Green oat extract
- Pinoleic Acid
- Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA)
Green Oat Extract
Green oat extract, which is similar to wild oat (Atena sativa) is used to enhance mood and relieve stress, anxiety, and tension. Green oats are also used as a tonic to treat nervous exhaustion. In studies, green oat extract is found to significantly inhibit two enzymes that produce mood states. Inhibiting these enzymes results in increased levels of dopamine and cyclic AMP, which helps promote positive feelings.
Pinolenic Acid
Pinolenic acid, which is derived from the Korean pine nut, is a nutrient that sends signals of satiety to the brain. It achieves this by releasing the hormones cholecytokinin (CCK) and glucagons-like-peptide-1, which reduce appetite and food intake. Pinolenic acid also promotes bile secretion, aiding in the digestion of dietary fats and it has been found to lower levels of low-density lipoproteins (LDL).
Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA)
Conjugated linoleic acid consists of paired derivatives of linoleic acid, an unsaturated fatty acid that increases feelings of satiety and fullness and decreases the number of negative emotions reported in subjects using it. CLA provides essential fatty acids for muscle cells and helps reduces abdominal fat. CLA has also been shown to reduce fat uptake into adipocytes (fat cells).
Green Tea for Weight Loss
In a related article in the April 2007 Life Extension Journal, researchers described the benefits of green tea extract in weight loss and in promoting optimal health and well-being. Studies confirm that the catechins in green tea may work by reducing fat cell proliferation, decreasing body and fat mass, inhibiting fat absorption, and lowering blood levels of triglycerides, cholesterol, glucose, and insulin.
Green Tea for Autoimmune Diseases
In addition, green tea extract works by promoting thermogenesis, which increases the metabolic rate, inhibiting fat digestion, and boosting exercise capacity. And as a bonus, researchers report that green tea extract may help diminish cardiovascular disease risk, protect against complications of diabetes, and help avert autoimmune diseases.
Resources:
M Blumenthal, in conjunction with the American Botanical Council, The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to Herbal Medicine, Austin, Texas, 1998.
David Nayor, Green Tea, Natural Support for Healthy Weight Control, Life Extension Foundation Journal, April, 2007: 41-6.
Dave Tuttle, New Strategy to Overcome “Emotional Eating,” Life Extension Foundation Journal, April, 2007: 29-37.
JM Gaullier, J Halse, K Hoye, et. al. Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation for 1 year reduces body fat mass in healthy overweight humans, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Jun 2004; 79(6): 185.
