Emotional Eating and Obesity: An Update and New Insights

The current review aimed to (1) synthesize information regarding the association between emotional eating (EE) and BMI, as well as between EE and dietary intake and psychological symptoms; (2) describe factors thought to underlie and/or maintain EE; and (3) summarize recent evidence supporting behavioral treatments of EE in people with obesity. Adults with obesity frequently report EE. Emotion regulation and learning principles are key variables that may influence EE in adults with obesity. Behavioral treatments show promise for decreasing EE, in the short-term, especially cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness-based approaches. Although psychosocial factors are critical to the understanding of EE mechanisms and treatment, limitations include measurement of EE and construct definitions of proposed theoretical variables. Additionally, behavioral interventions overlap which obscures the relative utility of treatment components. Future work should clarify causal mechanisms of EE in the context of obesity to inform treatment development.