AMY PACKER

EAT TO BEAT STRESS

Stress, anxiety and loneliness are problems for many of us right now and this can affect what and how we eat. For some it can lead to comfort eating resulting in weight gain, for others it can result in a loss of appetite, poor nutritional intake and weight loss. Here’s how to cope...

Comfort eating

„ Keep a food and mood diary. Write down everything you eat and your mood at the time to identify whether you eat because you’re bored, lonely, tired, sad or angry. Recognising your eating ‘triggers’ will help you find non-food solutions to use as alternatives.

„ Get to grips with hunger. Before reaching for the biscuits, assess whether you’re truly hungry. If you’ve got a rumbling tum or could be satisfied with a salad, now’s a good time to eat. If it’s only buttery toast and jam you want, it’s probably not true hunger.

„ Don’t let yourself get too hungry. Feeling really hungry will risk you grabbing quick-fix food to fill a gap. Cue a chocolate biscuit rather than a wholegrain sandwich.

„ Plan meals and snacks. Set a time for breakfast, lunch and dinner plus a couple of snacks. This will help structure your day and prevent constant grazing.

„ Distract yourself. Identify things to do such as cleaning a cupboard, doing a jigsaw puzzle or painting your nails for times when you feel like eating but aren’t hungry.

„ Make ‘comforting’ meals. Enjoy classic comfort food such as stews, soup, cottage pie, cheese on toast or spaghetti bolognese. They can still be really nutritious and made healthier by adding vegetables.

„ Keep healthier snacks on hand.

Try grapes, carrots and celery sticks, breadsticks, a handful of almonds, berries and satsumas.

Poor appetite

„ Eat with others. If you live with others enjoy mealtimes together. If you’re on your own, arrange a face-toface online social dinner with friends.

„ Eat little and often. This may suit better than three large meals each day if you have a small appetite.

„ Pack in the nutrients. When you do eat, have nutrient-rich foods that are packed with protein, vitamins and minerals, such as meat, fish, chicken, eggs, milk, cheese or yogurt.

„ Avoid low fat, low sugar or diet products. Getting enough calories to function well is a priority if you have a poor appetite – so enjoy full-fat yogurt and milk, for example.

„ Drink around meals. Fluids fill us up so don’t drink just before eating.

„ Embrace convenience. Make the most of ready meals and speedy dinners such as tinned sardines on toast or microwaveable jacket potatoes with cheese and beans.

„ Make the most of extra help. Take up offers of help for shopping and meals from family, friends and people in your local community.