Stressors, Emotions and Eating: Evidence for Time-Pressure-Driven Snacking Rather Than Emotional Eating.

ABSTRACT: Associations between stress, emotions and unhealthy eating have been reported, yet findings remain inconsistent. Stress eating and emotional eating have frequently been used interchangeably despite potential differences regarding physiological and psychological explanations. To aid in disentangling the shared and unique effects of stressors and emotions, we examined their associations with distinct aspects of eating behaviour (food craving, quantity, healthiness and snacking) in daily life in an experience-sampling study. Participants (N = 64) responded to six daily smartphone prompts over 4 weeks, reporting stressors, multidimensional emotional states (valence, arousal, calmness) and eating behaviour. Bayesian multilevel models revealed that general stressors were unrelated to snacking (O

SUBMITTER: Bamberg C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12829519 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature