Comfort Eating and Chronic Pain
More than two in three people with chronic pain turn to comfort food during flare-ups, according to researchers.
A survey of 141 adults with chronic pain found that the main reasons for comfort eating were:
- to have a pleasant experience (51.8%)
- distraction (49.6%)
- to reduce emotions (39%)
Comfort eating wasn’t just for the purpose of distraction or numbing negative feelings, although those were important too. For many, eating comfort foods provided a nice experience in their day and something to look forward to.
This was stated by Dr Amy Burton, a lecturer in clinical psychology at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), who co-authored the study.
Author's summary: People with chronic pain often eat for pleasure.