Should You Eat Whenever You Are Hungry How Psychological Hunger Does Gives Rise In Obesity - Literature review Example

Name Instructor Course Date Should You Eat Whenever You Are Hungry: How Psychological Hunger Does Gives Rise To Obesity. Introduction Obesity and overweight are a major public health issue in the developed world today (Heshmat 4). Most developed countries are currently struggling with the high obesity prevalence. The United States is among the countries with high obesity prevalence in the world and this has become a concern not just to the health professionals, but also to the government and the society as a whole. According to the Center for Diseases Prevention and Control (2016) report, about 68.8% of American is either overweight or obese. This means that only about 31.2% of Americans are considered healthy. The thing that worries Americans is that if the trend is allowed to continue, then America could soon become a sick nation considering that obesity is associated with a number of chronic conditions that include diabetes, cancer and heart diseases, as well as depression. Besides, obesity costs the country more than 147 billion dollars in medical cost as was the case in 2008 (Van den Akker 355). Although Americans understand the problem that obesity brings to the society, finding a solution to these problem has not been easy considering that it is not clear as to what triggers obesity. In recent times, there has been an ongoing debate as to whether people should eat whenever they are hungry or control their eating or eat according to schedule. Attach to eating behavior, there is also a public debate as to whether psychological hunger has a role in obesity. Answering these questions provide a good starting point in combating the obesity scourge that has interfered with the health and wellbeing of millions of Americans. Even as the debate continues to rage, this paper argues that obesity is caused by psychological hunger and that people should consider eating only when they are hungry. Food is important for the body and every person should eat to maintain a healthy life. However, the increased obesity prevalence in the developed world has brought a strong debater about eating habits and its role in obesity. Although there are many theories about the causes of obesity, psychological hunger appears to have the greatest role in obesity. Psychological hunger refers a situation caused by the desire to eat out of habit, such as when one see good meal around them that they feel like eating because they love the food because of its taste or out of fan (Collins et al. 5). In other words, psychological hunger is where a person eats something, not because they feel hungry, but because they love it and feels like eating it. Certainly, evidences on the ground points that the obesity problem that affects the society is largely caused by psychological hunger in which people eat even when they are not hungry just because they like the food. Heshmat study found that eating too much of junk foods that are highly rich in calories is to blame for the rising cases of obesity in the society (62) These foods have become popular in fast food restaurants throughout America the famous ones being McDonald’s, Wendy’s, KFC and Subway among others. However, experience indicate that people flock these restaurants to get a bit of burger and other sweet foods not because they are hungry, but because they just feel like eating such foods. As such, they end up eating these junk foods even when they are full and in the process, they end up adding a lot of weight that later impact negatively on their lives. This is supported by Collins et al study that found that people with obesity are more responsive to external cues, and less responsive to internal cues than the rest (21). As such, they are more likely to eat food even when they do not feel hunger and this normally trigger weight gain. In fact, a study conducted by researchers from the University of Cambridge dispelled the notion that obesity is genetic. In this study, the researchers found that most obesity is caused by the fact that Americans eat too much food. This study has been supported by others that show that most Americans have the tendency to finish the food on their plates even when they are already satisfied. CDC (2016) study also found that American food portions are larger than that of France. Based on this study, CDC concluded that it is because Americans eat too much that the country has more than 35% of adults with obesity when French obesity prevalence stands only at about 7%. Braet also found that American candy bars are 41% larger while its soft drinks are about 52% larger while cartons of yogurt are 82% larger compared to those in France (Braet 154). This is reason enough to show that obesity in America has to do with the fact that Americans eat too much, which is attached to psychological hunger considering that they eat even when their stomachs are full just for pleasure and because they like the cuisines. When people consume too much food than the body can burn due to psychological hunger, the rest are being stored as fat and this is what triggered faster weight increase that eventually results in obesity. When somebody eats when he/she does not feel any hunger, this implies that eating at such a time only means that the body is taking more than it needs and this is a recipe for weight increase and obesity. Psychological hunger is triggered by many sources, which include stress, depression, anger, boredom and emotional needs among other factors. As such, when a person is overcome by these triggers, anxiety, and emotional hunger sets in that result in bad eating habits that only make them add more weight (Yau, and Marc 256). For instance, Meule and Vögele observed that high levels of anxiety or depression can force a person to seek junk foods, not because they are feeling hungry, but just as a means of comfort (par. 4). According to Van den Akker et al., when people are stressed up, they look for a means of getting comfort and foods such as junks that have positive effects of the brain’s reward center makes most people go for junk foods (355). In the process, they end up eating large quantity of junk foods even when they are food, thereby resulting in weight gain. Besides, if all people were eating healthily when hungry and eating the required quantity that the body demands, then people would have a lean and healthy weight since there would be no excess food supplied in the body that would be transformed into fat (Stern, and Kazaks 39). This way, the society would live a healthy life without weight issues that the society is currently grappling with in different parts of the world. Opposing Arguments & Counter Argument Critics, however, claim that psychological hunger has no role in obesity. Among the prominent critics of psychological hunger in obesity is Van den Akker et al. who argues that obesity does not cause hunger (357). According to the authors, obesity is caused by other things other than psychological hunger arguing that there are some external cues that are responsible for obesity in people. According to Braet et al., psychological hunger has nothing to do with obesity arguing that hunger has psychological causes and that people often feel hungry even when their stomachs are full (Braet 153). She begins by dispelling the widely held notion that people feel hungry when their stomachs are empty and full when satisfied. She argues that internal cues that are associated with empty stomach are responsible for telling a person when to eat. However, Stern, and Kazaks note that even in circumstances where the cues are lacking, hunger can still be induced by external cues, which include normative cues, and sensory cues (64). Braet noted that, whereas everyone is affected by normative cues, people suffering from obesity are affected mainly by sensory cues, such as taste and smell (s19). Some critics of the role of psychological hunger of obesity argue that obesity has nothing to do with the quantity or the type of food that one eats; rather it is genetic. Those who maintain this position believes that diet or eating habit does not influence weight gain as they believe that individuals that are obese, are so because of their genetic makeup (Yau, and Marc 259). They cite the fact that some people can eat almost everything in this world but never gain weight, citing thin people. Although genetics has a role in a person’s body, it is important to understand that weight is also influenced by the amount of food that a person consumes (Van den Akker 356). As a matter of fact, there is no scientific proof to show that a person would gain weight when not consuming any food or eating very little portion of a meal. Accordingly, this is a clear indication that the quantity and the types of food that people eat determines whether a person would increase or maintain body weight. Conclusion Obesity is a reality that has been declared a public health problem in America. Although statistics indicate that obesity has taken a downward trajectory in the recent past following the measures that the government has been implementing in combating this health problem, a lot still needs to be done to make America obesity free. As indicated, up to 68.8% of Americans are either overweight or obese, which is a very high number meaning that only a small percentage of Americans are healthy. Unfortunately, it is strongly demonstrated in the paper that psychological hunger, which involves people eating not because they are hungry, but just because they love the foods and feel comfortable eating is a major factor in obesity. This has been demonstrated by the junk food eating habits, where the majority of Americans eat a lot of junk foods daily, not because they are hungry, but because they just have a craving for junks and in the process end up gaining a lot of weight, which eventually result in overweight or obesity. It is important to recognize that there are those who believe that psychological hunger has no role in obesity. Nevertheless, evidence on the growth appears to show that psychological hunger plays a huge role in obesity and should be targeted in addressing obesity in the country. Therefore, it is important for people to eat only when they are hungry but not otherwise. Works Cited Braet, Caroline. Psychological Profile to Become and To Stay Obese. International Journal of Obesity 29 (2005): S19–S23. Print. doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0803100 Braet, Caroline., O'Malley G., Weghuber D., Vania A., Erhardt É., Nowicka P., Mazur A., Frelut M.L., and Ardelt-Gattinger E. The Assessment of Eating Behaviour in Children Who Are Obese: A Psychological Approach. A Position Paper from the European Childhood Obesity Group. Obes Facts 7(2014):153-164. Print. DOI:10.1159/000362391 CDC. Overweight & Obesity. Web. 29 November 2016 https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/ Collins, Jennifer C., and Jon E. Bentz. Behavioral and Psychological Factors in Obesity. The Journal of Lancaster General hospital, 4. 4 (2009): 1. Print. Heshmat, Shahram. Eating Behavior and Obesity: Behavioral Economics Strategies for Health Professionals. Cambridge: Springer Publishing Company, 2011. Print. Higgs, Suzanne. Memory for Recent Eating and Its Influence on Subsequent Food Intake. Appetite, 39. 2 (2002): 159-166. Print. doi:10.1006/appe.2002.0500 Meule, Adrian and Claus Vögele. The Psychology of Eating. The Psychology of Eating. Web. 29 November 2016 http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00215/full Stern, Judith S. and Alexandra Kazaks. Obesity: A Reference Handbook. New York, NY: ABC-CLIO, 2009. Print. Van den Akker, Karolien, Karen Stewart, Evangelia E. Antoniou, Allison Palmberg and Anita Jansen. Food Cue Reactivity, Obesity, and Impulsivity: Are They Associated? Current Addiction Reports, 1. 4 (2014): 301–308. Print. Yau, Yvonne H. C. and Marc N. Potenza. Stress and Eating Behaviors. Minerva Endocrinol., 38. 3 (2013): 255–267. Print. Read More

Certainly, evidence on the ground point that the obesity problem that affects society is largely caused by psychological hunger in which people eat even when they are not hungry just because they like the food. Heshmat's study found that eating too much junk foods that are highly rich in calories is to blame for the rising cases of obesity in society (62) These foods have become popular in fast-food restaurants throughout America the famous ones being McDonald’s, Wendy’s, KFC and Subway among others.

However, experience indicates that people flock to these restaurants to get a bit of burgers and other sweet foods not because they are hungry, but because they just feel like eating such foods. As such, they end up eating these junk foods even when they are full and in the process, they end up adding a lot of weight that later impacts negatively on their lives. This is supported by Collins et al study that found that people with obesity are more responsive to external cues and less responsive to internal cues than the rest (21).

As such, they are more likely to eat food even when they do not feel hunger and this normally triggers weight gain.In fact, a study conducted by researchers from the University of Cambridge dispelled the notion that obesity is genetic. In this study, the researchers found that most obesity is caused by the fact that Americans eat too much food. This study has been supported by others that show that most Americans tend to finish the food on their plates even when they are already satisfied. CDC (2016) study also found that American food portions are larger than that of France.

Based on this study, CDC concluded that it is because Americans eat too much that the country has more than 35% of adults with obesity when French obesity prevalence stands only at about 7%. Braet also found that American candy bars are 41% larger while its soft drinks are about 52% larger while cartons of yogurt are 82% larger compared to those in France (Braet 154). This is reason enough to show that obesity in America has to do with the fact that Americans eat too much, which is attached to psychological hunger considering that they eat even when their stomachs are full just for pleasure and because they like the cuisines.

When people consume too much food then the body can burn due to psychological hunger, the rest are being stored as fat and this is what triggered a faster weight increase that eventually results in obesity. When somebody eats when he/she does not feel any hunger, this implies that eating at such a time only means that the body is taking more than it needs and this is a recipe for weight increase and obesity.Psychological hunger is triggered by many sources, which include stress, depression, anger, boredom, and emotional needs among other factors.

As such, when a person is overcome by these triggers, anxiety, and emotional hunger sets in that result in bad eating habits that only make them add more weight (Yau, and Marc 256). For instance, Meule and Vögele observed that high levels of anxiety or depression can force a person to seek junk foods, not because they are feeling hungry, but just as a means of comfort (par. 4). According to Van den Akker et al., when people are stressed up, they look for a means of getting comfort, and foods such as junk that have positive effects on the brain’s reward center make most people go for junk foods (355).

In the process, they end up eating large quantities of junk foods even when they are food, thereby resulting in weight gain.Besides, if all people were eating healthily when hungry and eating the required quantity that the body demands, then people would have a lean and healthy weight since there would be no excess food supplied in the body that would be transformed into fat (Stern, and Kazaks 39). This way, society would live a healthy life without weight issues that society is currently grappling with within different parts of the world.

Critics, however, claim that psychological hunger has no role in obesity. Among the prominent critics of psychological hunger in obesity is Van den Akker et al. who argues that obesity does not cause hunger (357).

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