Assessing the relationship between emotional eating and dietary habits among college students 18-22yrs

College students lead various lifestyles and have different eating habits. They frequently depend on quick and simple meals.  Access is the main factor impacting food choices, aside from flavor.  Therefore, eating fast food is a common part of college students’ diets.  Also, the majority of college students ignore the dietary guidelines, regularly skipping meals, eating unsuitable snacks, and drinking too much alcohol

Dietary habits refer to the long-term dietary patterns and habits that an individual forms and maintains in their daily life. Dietary behavior is an essential and ongoing activity in daily life, which involves internal, external, and conscious activities related to eating. With a deeper understanding of nutritional science, people are increasingly aware of the complex relationship between dietary habits and health outcomes.

Emotional eating is not a separate eating disorder but an eating behavior that is influenced by behaviors, stress, emotions, and individual feelings in relation to eating. However, it must be clear that emotional eating, unlike specific eating disorders, is not related to a total failure to keep under control the quantity and quality of food consumed. Emotional or comfort eating, as well as stress-induced eating, leads to the predisposition to eat in response to negative emotions, with the preferred foods being mainly energy-dense, poor in nutrients, and tasty. These types of eating act as a coping mechanism to control and decrease negative emotions, such as depressed mood, anxiety, and stress