Obesity and Overweight are serious health problems in America, even among children and adolescents, and one of the most painful aspects of obesity is the emotional suffering it causes.

Why do people eat when they are not hungry?

It turns out, there are emotional reasons individuals eat when they are not hungry.

Using food to find happiness, peace of mind, and/or gain control in one’s life is the beginning of addiction. Food addiction causes eventual withdrawal from society, friends, loved ones, and God.

While under the influence of addiction overweight or obese individuals may hide stores of food or eat in concealment to hide their addiction from others.

• Some use food as a defense mechanism to stop unwanted feelings. Food is used as a tool to overcome feelings of boredom, worry, guilt, sadness, and loneliness.
• Eating helps to procrastinate the beginning of a job one does not want to do.
• Some overeat because they see it as shameful to throw food away.
• Some people reason that when they are thin they cannot be passive but must face their fears.
• Some feel inferior and eat to feel secure.
• Some choose obesity as a defense to stop physical or sexual abuse. This is especially so with young.
• Covering up revenge or anger is another reason some becoming overweight.

For example, if a husband wants his wife to be pregnant and she does not, consciously or unconsciously she may choose characteristics that cause her to become unappealing to her husband. Obesity and poor hygiene are two effective ways to do.

Many addictions come from bottling feelings inside and covering them up with addictive substances.

Men have been taught to hold back their emotions to prove they are men. They have sought different ways to cover up their feelings.

Food is one of many addictions men have used to do this. Even more frequently used is alcohol.

Women are generally the ones who choose to cover feelings and other emotions with food addiction.

On the average there are nine women for every man with a food addiction.

The group with the highest risk of food addiction is adolescence.

This is because the adolescent receives a lot of pressure from peers about his or her body image.

American society places great emphasis on physical appearance, often equating attractiveness with slimness or muscularity.

In addition, many people wrongly stereotype obese people as gluttonous, lazy, or both. However, more and more evidence contradicts this assumption.

Obese people often face prejudice or discrimination at work, at school, while looking for a job, and in social situations.

Feelings of rejection, shame, or depression are common.

Overweight and obesity are global and increasing health problems which contribute to the development of number of serious diseases.

Although knowledge of the biological aspects of overweight and obesity is increasing very rapidly, psychological factors associated with this problem have not been enough considered.

The bottom line — It seems very important to work out psychological theory and research concerning emotional and cognitive aspects of being obese, to search for psychological causes of obesity and to implement psychological interventions which improve motivation for management and effectiveness of treatment of people with overweight and obesity.