Why do we eat when emotional or stressed?

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The Food and Mood Project, a nutrition research group in the U.K.,
identified "food stressors" and "food supporters," foods that
exacerbate stress from the inside and those that help people under
stress.

Participants reported that cutting down or avoiding "food stressors"
like sugar (80%), caffeine (79%), alcohol (55%) and chocolate (53%)
had the most impact on mental health. So did having more "food
supporters" like water (80%), vegetables (78%), fruit (72%) and oil-
rich fish (52%).

The survey also found some dietary strategies particularly helpful in
encouraging a healthful diet: eating regular meals, carrying
nutritious snacks and planning meals in advance.
Nevertheless, quality research now underway is seriously tackling how
the foods we consume affect our internal chemistry. We already know
that stress hormones like cortisol actually rob the body of vitamins,
hijacking them to support such classic stress responses as the
tensing of muscles and the rise of blood pressure, reactions
fundamental to the fight-or-flight response.

Thus at times when we're experiencing the nervous-system workout of
anxiety, we are in special need of B vitamins, which help maintain
our nerves and brain cells. B vitamins also used up in converting
food into energy for the body.

It's double whammy for the body if calories consumed during stressful
times don't come from nutritious foods, as they'll then be depleted
even more quickly. Even a slight vitamin B deficiency--say, from a
few days of overloading on chips and soda--upsets the nervous system
and compounds stress.

A better bet at trying times: fish, avocados, chicken and dark green leafy veggies. All are loaded with B vitamins.

Extreme stress can create even more nutritional havoc. The "fight or
flight" effect on our bodies is drastic. Some 1400 chemical changes
occur as stress hormones sap the body of important nutrients, such as
those B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin A and the mineral magnesium.

The hormones released in response to stress can cause carbohydrate
cravings by lowering levels of serotonin, the calming hormone.
Increasing carbohydrate intake can strengthen tolerance to stress by
boosting levels of serotonin, but it can also cause weight gain and overeating, particularly of sugary foods.