90 percent of weight loss failure caused by emotional attachment to food: survey

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According to a recently conducted survey, 90 percent of Americans fail to lose weight because of their emotional attachment to food.

A common New Year's resolution for millions of people in the United States is to lose weight in the coming year. However, EurekAlert says only 8 percent of them are successful.

Approximately 67 percent of people who lose weight will eventually gain it back. Diane Robinson, Orlando Health's integrative program director and neuropsychologist said this is not unusual.

"Most people focus almost entirely on the physical aspects of weight loss, like diet and exercise. But there is an emotional component to food that the vast majority of people simply overlook and it can quickly sabotage their efforts," she said.

Globe Newswire says people use food as a way to relieve stress. The brain reacts to fatty, processed foods in much the same way as it does to drugs.

Orlando Health conducted a survey to see what people think is the reason why losing weight is difficult. Out of thousands who participated in the survey, 31 percent of respondents felt that they were not exercising enough.

Another 26 percent think it involves poor food choices, 17 percent believe that following a healthy lifestyle is expensive while 12 percent believe it is due to not devoting enough time.

Only 10 percent of the respondents thought that emotional attachments to food may be a factor. Robinson believes this may be the reason why most people have difficulty losing weight.

"In order to lose weight and keep it off long term, we need to do more than just think about what we eat, we also need to understand why we're eating," Robinson said.

Associating food with emotions starts at a young age. Kids are often offered treats when they are being good or as a means of consoling the child when they are upset.

According to The Daily Meal, people associate happy memories and relationships with food. Robinson also states that most major celebrations such as Halloween and Thanksgiving focus on eating and sharing food.

"We are conditioned to use food not only for nourishment but for comfort. That's not a bad thing, necessarily, as long as we acknowledge it and deal with it appropriately."

Robinson offers suggestions on how to identify if you have an emotional attachment to food. One tip is to keep a log of foods you ate and your mood.

Next, make a list of your comfort foods and analyze why you eat them. Do you eat them because of stress or do they make you feel good?

Do the analysis every time you eat a meal or get a snack. This will help determine if you are eating because of hunger or for a different reason.

The main objective of the exercise is to see food as a source of nourishment and not as a way to cope with stress or as a reward for good behavior.