Work Stress and Eating Habits

The American work setting is grounded in cultural values, and they form a basis for causes of work stress and associated illness. An annual price tag of approximately 300 billion used by the government for measures of preventing job stress, adverse impacts of work-related stress have increased dramatically, and they have detrimental effects on health. 35% of the people working reported that their work harms their emotional and physical health while 42% reported that work pressures are meddling with their personal relationships ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . Another lot said that their workloads have become more demanding compared to the previous year ( Adriaanse et.al, 2011) . With the technological and societal advancement, the job responsibilities are becoming more complex and difficult. As the job responsibilities increased, it is perceived that the work stress continues. 

Studies indicate that work stress further influences risky health-related practices both psychologically and physiologically. It was noted that high efforts towards job responsibilities with low rewards were connected to causes of back pain as well as repetitive strain injuries. Through observation of the technological advancement in the American society, it is clear that the constant motion is moving at great speeds every year ( Adriaanse et.al, 2011) . Therefore our culture necessitates a faster but easier lifestyle. America society is programmed to consumption of unhealthy foods through a series of promotional and marketing strategies in radios, print, television and the internet (social networks). Additionally, the fast food restaurants have become a billion dollar industry which has further worsened the obesity epidemic in America ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . 

Work stressors have been linked to various negative issues in the work setting. Some of these issues comprise of workload, interpersonal conflicts and lack of autonomy. Any alteration in the workplace like new management and downsizing has also been connected to straining due to uncertainty. High efforts with low rewards, performing under constant supervision and lack of authority can be correlated with work stress ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . Defining the literature for work stress can essentially be described as the workers facing of job-related difficulties, anxiety, worry, distress, anxiety and emotional exhaustion. These stressors, when understood by the workers (cognitive interpretation), can cause stress. 

Job insecurities

Job insecurity has heightened while the employment responsibilities have become more demanding. Job insecurities can be grouped in two unique categories ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . Foremost, is the "objective insecurity" which is described as they type of employment where employees sign contracts which are temporary and secondly the "subjective or perceived job insecurity" where the employees’ are constantly fearing of losing their jobs and employment continuation ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . Adults spend most of their times at work and the positions they hold in the company the work for is important. Work stressors like job insecurities linked with high demands can have negative impacts on their physical well-being as well their psychological health. Temporary workers report worrying about losing their jobs because of restructuring or downsizing and even fewer shifts than expected. 

Emotional eating

With a global number of over 1 billion people who are currently overweight and a projection of 1.5 billion by the end of the year, health challenges will continue to increase while more preventive measure will be required. Emotional eating is consistently linked to overeating, and it is simply described as the tendency to overeat as a negative emotional response that is often found in stressful circumstances ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . Essentially, eating created temporary satisfaction and releases endorphins and after that, the focus is redirected. When the body is in a stressful state, it demands a coping mechanism and the fast food are readily accessible mainly the fast foods, and hence people turn to consuming these foods so as to cope with irritability or anxiety. Just like the addiction to drugs, food addictions also have a similar dependence ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . The foods are depended on to relieve or prevent harmful conditions. Consumption of food has both positive and negative reinforcements. The positive reinforcement is the pleasurable effects while the negative reinforcement is the comforting effects which can be attributed to a person’s reaction to stress. 

Diabetes

Diabetes is also a primary health concern in the US. Approximately 13 million people find out they have diabetes annually, and the numbers keep on growing steadily ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . Physical morbidity, social and occupational impairment and the heightened utilization of heath care services have been linked to diabetes (Ahima, 2011). Furthermore eating disorders that lead to underweight or overweight and obesity is also leading causes of diabetes.

Obesity

The US has continued to invest billions of money on healthcare. Obesity has been correlated t many morbidities such as heart disease, cancer, hypertension and diabetes which have been increasing at a phenomenal rate. Moreover, obesity plays a pivotal role in lowering productivity as well as shortening the lifespan of individuals (Ahima, 2011). Obesity has also been associated with lowering the immune system and as a result creating résistance to insulin which causes diabetes. Obesity is not a problem facing the developed nations only but it has also developed in low and middle-class nations. While dieting, exercising, and anti-obesity drugs have proved to be ineffective drastic measures have to be taken on the importance of changing our lifestyles (Ahima, 2011). 

Stress factors and negative moods have been identified to lead to unwanted eating behaviors since consumption of food is utilized as a coping mechanism to get rid of stressors. Based on the current pieces of literature work stress and poor eating will lead to a plethora of adverse effects in the work industry and the health of the nation. Based on the theory of individual differences it was noted that women are highly likely to increase their consumption of food compared to the men, particularly on certain foods. 

Two unique models of eating and stress have been tested. The “general effects” theory suggests that stress results increase in consumption of food in all organisms ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . Primarily, this model was tested in animals, and it concentrated on the physiological rationales of stress-induced eating. On the other hand, the ‘individual differences’ projects that factors like learning biology, history will have an impact on individual whether a person will increase the consumption of food when stressed ( Koolhaas et.al, 2007) . The model has experimented on human beings and in comparison with the” general effects” viewpoint which postulate that physiological alterations cause changes in eating that environmental and psychological environment are the central mechanisms of change. 

Three techniques of pinpointing whether persons are susceptible to increased eating when stressed have been proposed the first technique is grounded in weight. It is postulated that people of normal weight will decrease their eating patterns when stressed while the obese individuals will remain unaffected. The second technique is based on dietary restraint ( Koolhaas et.al, 2007) . The method posits that people who regulate their eating when not faced with stressful conditions will heighten their eating pattern when stressed. Conversely, those people who do not monitor their eating will not be affected. Lastly, the third techniques involve gender. The model suggests that women will heighten their eating habits when stressed compared to the men, particularly towards certain foods. 

Method

Participants

The participants selected for this study were described broadly as non-employed and employed U.S citizens. The participants were further groups into two groups based on the employment status. The first group comprised of people who had a job and worked at lease 8-40 hours a week. The other group consisted of people who did not have jobs ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . The population was alerted that they would be asked about their typical eating habits as well as their eating habits when stressed. The participants were invited to fill out the two questionnaires namely the demographic questionnaires and the normal eating and stress eating questionnaire. 

Materials

Demographic Questionnaire

A Demographic Questionnaire was modeled, and the participants were asked to indicate their age and sex. The participants measured their heights and their weight recorded. These measures would be used in calculating their BMI (( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . They were further asked whether they were dieting and this question was aimed at measuring the dietary restraint which comprises of controlling or restricting eating. Restrained eaters are described as people who are currently dieting whereas the unrestrained eaters are individuals who are not dieting. 

The Typical Eating and Stress Eating Questionnaire

The Typical Eating and Stress Eating Questionnaire was given to the participants to identify their eating habits about stress. The questionnaire was modeled to examine how the participants’ change their eating patterns under stressful conditions contrasted to their relaxed states ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . The questionnaire comprised of at least40 questions which highlighted the participants’ typical eating habits as well as their eating habits when stressed. Specifically, the eating habits examined include;

eating behavior (eat the same, over-eat under-eat)

flavor preferences (salty, bitter, bland, sour, savory, sweet0)

food type preferences (meal type, snack-type)

food preparation choices (take out, home-made)

loss of control while eating (yes, no)

These items were examined with the consideration of the usual preferences and the stress preferences to analyze preferences changes when stressed and when not stressed. 

Procedure

Before the questionnaires were given to the participants, they were given a consent form explaining the right, rules and regulations. The information highlighted the study and its non-affiliation with the institution. Furthermore, the data collected will remain anonymous ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . Additionally, the participants were informed of the risks involved by agreeing to participate in the study. The participants’ read the informed consent and after comprehending the risks involved and the rule the activity continued. 

The participants filled the demographics questionnaire which highlighted questions relating to age, gender, marital status, nationality, education, employment length, and residency. The assessment techniques utilized in this study comprised of two questionnaires which were created by the researcher ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . SPSS was used to calculate the data gathered, and both scores for eating habits and work stress were examined. The demographic information provided was also studied individually and recorded to analyses any variability in the scores. 

Results

The data provided was measured by an independent T-test for both the job status and nutritional choice indicated that a correlation between work stress and eating patterns exist. As hypothesized, the outcomes indicated a significant connection the total score of work stress (M=15,000 SD=50529) and the total score of unhealthy eating (M=7500 SD=43759). Figure 1 indicates the mean and standard deviation of job status and the nutrition choices while figure 2 shows the mean differences in the evaluations scores ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . Additionally, the mean age of all the population involved in the study was 20 years, and it ranged from 18-33 years. The BMI was also calculated based on the BMI formula provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By using the height and weight which were taken from each participant, the mean BMI was found to be 25.14 (SD=4.32). 

Table 1. Pearson’s Correlation between Demographic Data, Total Score of Work Stress and Total Score of Unhealthy Eating Habits

	Work Stress Total Score	Unhealthy Eating Habits Total Score
Gender	-.202	-.037
Age	.011	-.202
Employed	.181	-.050
Employment Length	.168	.025
Current residency	.096	-.189
Ethnicity	.023	-.195
Marital Status	.013	.026
Education	.050	.007

Discussion

Our prediction was right people under stress would choose an unhealthy snack compared to a healthy snack. The findings indicate that various psychological factors impact the eating patterns and food preference in stress over-eater and under-eaters for the groups ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . Specifically, it was observed that the level of stress and secure attachment styles projected the eating patterns of the stress under-eaters. Nevertheless, these two factors indicated opposite impacts on the eating patterns. Increased stress leads to a hypophagic reaction while decreased attachment security leads to a hyperphagic reaction. Contrastingly, the eating patterns of the stress eater could not be projected but the attachment style of stress level ( Torres & Nowson, 2007) . The study conducted on the each group revealed that group (A) experienced high levels of work stress whereas group (B) experienced little or no work stress at all. The preferences of food by the stress under eater were also projected their secure attachment style and stress. 

Based on the results, it appears that unique psychological factors impact the eating patterns and preference for food in each group ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . The report indicated that work stress has an influence on the food consumption especially preference of eating unhealthy foods. An additional outcome featuring the two groups eating patterns having been affected by different attachment domains. Given the mean scores of these two groups, it is clear the job stressors have a huge impact on the eating habits of the people ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . These findings elucidate the differences that exist between these two groups and they also provide the variances of the eating reactions when stressed. 

Particularly, these findings underscore the distinct impacts of different attachment models on food preference and eating patterns for different groups of people. Moreover, the eating patterns will further assist to understand the multifaceted association between work stress and eating, and it might also offer valuable data concerning targets for obesity, and the disordered interventions required to handle work stress ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . Hence, this information pinpoints valuable difference between the stress-associated food preferences in each group and may help us to understand the distinct underlying factors that cause varied changes in eating behaviors in various people. 

For instance, the link between disinhibited behaviors and attachment can be expressed based on affect regulations. Essentially, the attachment theory is a framework that attempts to explain how people use different coping strategies so as to manage stress. A person’s coping strategy relies on their attachment style. People who have insecure attachment are believed to possess poorer internal ability to control effect and thus look for external resources to manage stress ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . For instance, when stressed people who have a secure attachment tend to look for comfort though the proximity of security so as to control their distress or feelings. Therefore they do not have to depend on external strategies like food consumption to manage their stress. On the other hand, people who have do not have a secure attachment do not have a secure proximity from where they can control their feelings ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . As a result, it causes hyper-activation in their attachment systems and results to environment prompts of stress, and I become overwhelming. In turn, the pattern produced the need to use an external method like consumption food and alcohol to reduce and manage their stressful experiences. 

These results are correlated with the justifications of the attachment theory because an individual who is less secured are more likely to control theory stress by utilizing positive external stimuli such as heightened food consumption ( Siegrist & Rödel, 2006) . The long term repercussions of disinhibited eating cause serious health issues such as ulcers, hypertension, and obesity ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . Hence comprehending the attachment style is important for professionals and researchers to increase their efforts in addressing the coping strategies that will enable people in the work industry to utilize rather than consuming unhealthy foods when stressed. Interventions aimed at improving self-efficacy will assist people to develop internal self-control skills to manage stress and hence eradicating the need to increased food consumption of unhealthy food choices. In the long term, the changes will be of significant value because it will decrease health problems that have become a major concern worldwide. 

Limitations and Future Research

Male participants’ number was limited, and this was the chief limitation of the research. The female population was 62% the correlation between work stress and eating behavior patterns should further be analyzed in both genders before the results are used to generalize the entire population ( Kivimäki et.al, 2006) . Furthermore based on our lack of knowledge or prior research on the connection between stress and food preparation method a further study should be conducted to examine this correlation as well. The self-report utilized in this research also presents a limitation to this study and thus future studies should authenticate these outcomes in a more controlled context ( Koolhaas et.al, 2007) . 

The participants’ population in this study was limited because the participants’ were university students and hence generalization of these findings should be administered with caution. Future studies should try to analyze these factors in a diverse population so as to determine whether these findings can be used to generalize the entire population ( Koolhaas et.al, 2007) . Lastly bearing in mind that women tend to have an increased risk of consuming unhealthy foods, it is vital to explore the susceptibility to unhealthy alterations such as snacking. Therefore it is important to elucidate further the impacts of gender in the stress eating patterns. 

References

Adriaanse, M. A., de Ridder, D. T., & Evers, C. (2011). Emotional eating: Eating when emotional or emotional about eating?  Psychology and Health ,  26 (1), 23-39.

Ahima, R. S. (2011). Digging deeper into obesity. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3104789/

Kivimäki, M., Head, J., Ferrie, J. E., Shipley, M. J., Brunner, E., Vahtera, J., & Marmot, M. G. (2006). Work stress, weight gain and weight loss: evidence for bidirectional effects of job strain on body mass index in the Whitehall II study.  International journal of obesity ,  30 (6), 982-987.

Koolhaas, J. M., De Boer, S. F., Buwalda, B., & Van Reenen, K. (2007). Individual variation in coping with stress: a multidimensional approach of ultimate and proximate mechanisms.  Brain, behavior and evolution ,  70 (4), 218-226.

Siegrist, J., & Rödel, A. (2006). Work stress and health risk behavior.  Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health , 473-481.

Torres, S. J., & Nowson, C. A. (2007). Relationship between stress, eating behavior, and obesity.  Nutrition ,  23 (11), 887-894.