Whether you’re sleep deprived and stressed, or struggling with that work-life balance as a new mum, let’s face it – everyone seeks culinary comfort at some point.
In fact, a new study shows that comfort eating is actually a real thing – and women are nearly twice as likely to emotionally eat in order to deal with stress than men.
According to research by Perkbox, 42% of women comfort eat to deal with stress compared to just 26% of men.
What’s more, those not in relationships are amongst the most likely to turn to food in times of stress, with 42% doing this compared with just 28% of those living with partners and 29% of those who are married.
But while men tend to be better at resisting comfort eating, they are more likely than women to turn to coffee, cigarettes and alcohol – to cope with stress.
Almost 1 in 4 (23%) of men will do this during times of stress compared to just 13% of women.
Perkbox’s CMO & Co-Founder, Chieu Cao commented: “It’s fascinating to see how differently men and women cope with stress.
“Clearly, comfort eating is a hugely popular form of stress relief within the UK workforce.
“But this is not a healthy method of stress relief, and can lead to overeating and, as a result, obesity.
“Relying on stimulants such as alcohol, caffeine and nicotine – all of which, ironically, actually contribute to stress, tension and anxiety – is also a common but unhealthy method of stress relief.
And it is especially interesting to see how much more of an issue this is amongst the male workforce.”
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