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Emotional Eating and How to Know If You're Really Hungry

By Ethan Boldt

May 29, 2025

The desire to eat less is pronounced in today’s society, in which many people seek to lose weight or manage a healthy weight. Maybe they’ve successfully incorporated fitness into their life and are even eating the right kinds of foods, but the overall calorie consumption remains too high … and eating frequency is too often.

If this describes you, then it’s time to talk about emotional eating. When you eat, are you always truly hungry? How much is that hunger emotional rather than physical?

We’re not just talking about “stress eating” but also when we’re bored (boredom is considered the No. 1 emotional type of hunger). Of course, we also can eat plenty when we’re celebrating.

A 2023 survey conducted by the American Psychological Association revealed that 38 percent of adults admit to emotional eating in the past month, with half of them engaging in it weekly.

However, if you get a handle on your emotional eating, those weight loss and improved physique goals will be more achievable. Learn the triggers of emotional eating, the differences between emotional and physical hunger, and how to stop emotional eating.

What is emotional eating?

Emotional eating is usually considered eating in response to negative emotions, which can be stress, anger, fear, sadness, loneliness and even boredom. Food is being used to supposedly ease these feelings, in a faulty attempt to self-soothe.

The response may be conscious but can also be unconscious. You’re temporarily filling a void, but it doesn’t last very long. If you’re trying to lose weight, emotional eating can sabotage those efforts.

Typically, emotional eating is an unhealthy cycle that’s repeated. The stages are as follows:

• A trigger occurs, such as stress or boredom

• You turn to food for comfort

• Temporarily you feel relief

• Feelings of guilt and even sadness then develop

• Repeat

Causes of emotional eating

• Emotional triggers: Feelings of anxiety, loneliness, or boredom often lead people to eat as a way to cope with difficult emotions.

• Hormonal shifts: Elevated stress levels boost cortisol production, which can increase appetite and trigger cravings for unhealthy foods.

• Environmental cues: Certain environments — like watching TV or being in the kitchen — can unconsciously prompt mindlessly snacking.

• Dieting and restriction: Highly restrictive diets may create a sense of deprivation, making emotional eating more likely as a form of compensation.

• Suppressing emotions: Many individuals turn to food to numb unpleasant feelings such as anger, sadness, fear or shame. They may gain temporary comfort but also reinforce unhealthy patterns.

• Childhood conditioning: When food is used as a reward or source of comfort in childhood, those associations can carry into adulthood, triggering emotional eating during stressful times.

• Social influences: Social settings — like family events or outings with friends — can encourage overeating, especially when mixed with peer pressure or emotional fluctuations.

Recognizing these underlying causes is a crucial first step in breaking the cycle of emotional eating and building healthier ways to cope with emotions.

Physical vs. emotional hunger

To help overcome emotional eating, it’s first important to distinguish between emotional and physical hunger, as you may be getting cues for which you confuse the two.

Physical hunger:

• Builds gradually over time

• Accompanied by physical cues like an empty stomach, low energy, stomach growling or irritability

• You're inclined to eat a balanced meal and are open to a variety of food options

• You engage your senses to enjoy the food while eating

• You feel comfortably full and content after eating

• Eating does not lead to feelings of guilt; instead, you may feel happy

Emotional hunger:

• Arises suddenly and feels urgent

• Triggered by emotional distress rather than physical hunger cues

• Often involves strong cravings for specific comfort foods, like sweets or salty snacks

• You may obsess over food choices, labeling them as “good” or “bad”

• Portion control tends to be ignored, and overeating can happen mindlessly

• Eating doesn’t lead to a sense of fullness or satisfaction

• The experience may feel automatic or disconnected, like eating on autopilot

• Often followed by guilt, regret or sadness

How to stop emotional eating

Fortunately, there are ways to stop being an emotional eater. For example, research published in the Journal of Eating Disorders shows that promoting exercise, mindful eating, emotion regulation and positive body image can all positively affect emotional eaters.

1. Identify your triggers

One of the most crucial steps in overcoming emotional eating is learning to recognize what sets it off. Ask yourself: What situations, conversations, emotions or experiences tend to spark the urge to eat, even when you're not truly hungry?

To uncover your triggers, consider keeping a journal. Write down what was happening —externally and internally — before you started eating. Over time, patterns will emerge, helping you understand your emotional connections to food.

Once you’ve identified these triggers, create a plan to respond differently. Instead of turning to food for comfort, prepare a list of healthy, soothing alternatives that can help you process the discomfort in more constructive ways.

2. Try to determine if you’re really hungry

Ask yourself questions like “why am I hungry right now” and “what exactly do I want to eat?” Your answers should be telling.

Emotional hunger is often your body’s signal that you’re seeking comfort or relief — not food. You might not be truly hungry; instead, you could just need a short break, a breath of fresh air or a quick walk to ease your stress.

Energy levels play a big role in how we interpret hunger. If you pause and check in with yourself, you may realize that you’re just tired or mentally distracted, not physically hungry.

Try to identify the emotion you’re experiencing and name it. If you’re feeling stressed, choose something that helps you unwind. If you’re bored, engage in an activity that captures your interest, even briefly.

3. Identify the cause of your cravings

Cravings are common for women and men, especially for salty foods, such as French fries and potato chips, chocolate and other sweets, as well as “highly palatable foods” that combine fat, sugar and salt (aka most “comfort foods” like donuts).

Many cravings are caused by memories that link together pleasurable sensations and a certain food. The brain stores these memories in a way that associates the food with a “reward” and feeling good. Oftentimes we experience food cravings when we’re feeling a certain way, such as sad, nervous, overwhelmed or excited.

Try to separate such an obvious craving from simply being physically hungry, such as after a workout. Another way to stop food cravings is making sure you have healthy swaps ready to go, instead of a cupboard full of unhealthy snacks that makes it too easy to give in to your emotional hunger.

4. Eat in an undistracted way

Give your brain the best chance to register the food you’re eating by having food mindfully, sitting down at a table and not being distracted.

Too often people eat at their desks, in front of their computer, watching TV or while scrolling on their phone. They’re eating almost unconsciously.

5. Avoid excessive calorie restriction

Are you constantly dieting or restricting your calorie intake? If you're obsessing over every meal and snack while maintaining a strict dieting mindset, you might be more prone to emotional eating. This often happens when you're trying to soothe the emotional discomfort caused by feelings of deprivation or dissatisfaction with your body and eating habits.

Instead of turning to food during emotional moments, shift your focus to mindful eating. Tune in to your body’s physical hunger cues and nourish yourself with satisfying, well-balanced meals.

6. Eat healthy, filling foods

A healthy diet doesn’t have to leave you feeling hungry. Incorporating high-protein foods, healthy fats and fiber-rich ingredients can help you feel full and more content — both physically and emotionally.

Also consider adding a protein supplement like Ancient Nutrition's Whey Protein with its Fat Loss Blend. Then you get premium protein to help reduce hunger cravings while following some of the tips above.

7. Know your physical hunger cues

Eating is essential for fueling your body, and it’s completely normal to feel hungry several times throughout the day.

Common signs of physical hunger include a light or empty feeling in your stomach, stomach growling or low energy. Ideally, you shouldn’t wait until you feel depleted — learning to recognize these early cues can help you eat in a way that supports your energy and well-being.

If you're unsure whether your hunger is physical or emotional, establishing a consistent eating routine can help. Try eating breakfast, lunch and dinner around the same time each day.

You can also include one or two planned snacks, if needed. Over time, your body will adapt to this rhythm, and when hunger strikes outside of your usual mealtimes, you’ll be better able to pause and ask yourself whether it’s true physical hunger or something else.

8. Consider seeking support

When emotional challenges arise, reaching out to trusted friends, family members or professionals can make a meaningful difference. Don’t hesitate to lean on those around you—sometimes just talking things through can bring comfort and clarity.

Connecting with loved ones can offer emotional relief and a fresh perspective. You might also find value in joining a support group or speaking with a licensed therapist, especially if emotional eating feels overwhelming to manage on your own.

Remember, you don’t have to face it alone. Social support can reduce feelings of isolation and empower you to make positive changes.