Can a Cluttered Kitchen Lead to Stress Eating?

Can you recall a time when you found yourself stress eating? Stress can lead to consuming too much food by impacting behavior and impairing one’s ability to execute self-control. A recent study examined whether a cluttered kitchen contributes to stress and leads to overeating.

Researchers assigned 98 college-aged women to either an organized kitchen or a messy one in which furniture and cookware were out of place. The women were then asked to complete one of three writing tasks about the following topics: a time when they felt out of control, a time when they felt in control or the last lecture they attended (a neutral condition).

After being exposed to either the standard or cluttered kitchen and completing the writing task, each woman was given three bowls that had been previously weighed and filled with one of three snacks: cookies, crackers or carrots. The women were asked to taste and rate each type of food and were told they could eat as much as they wanted. Each bowl was then reweighed to determine their intake.

Across the board, more participants consumed cookies and crackers than they did carrots. The analysis showed that the participants who ate the most cookies were those participants exposed to a messy environment and also those who wrote about a time when they felt out of control. These findings are consistent with the idea that people often turn to sweet foods for comfort during times of stress.

Bottom Line: The combination of a chaotic environment along with a stressed mindset may increase your chances of over indulging. Take a few minutes each day to put things away in your kitchen and unclutter your environment. Remember to think about your desk at work as well; a cluttered desk may contribute to stress and lead to overindulgence in sweets around the office. After a stressful day, practice mindfulness by recalling a time when you felt in control. 

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