Be Grateful, Eat Less

Can practicing gratitude help you make healthier food choices? The answer is, YES!

Research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology indicated that practicing gratitude can have a positive impact on your food choices. Participants were asked to pick 1 of 3 topics to focus on:

• gratitude to someone that helped them with their health,
• someone who helped them with their schooling, or
• someone that did something kind for them.

Each participant spent 5 minutes per week writing in their gratitude journal and was asked to spend 30 minutes each week improving themselves in the area associated with their gratitude topic.

The participants reported healthier eating habits within a month. Three months after the conclusion of their journaling, their healthier food choices had begun to wane, however, their choices were still better than they initially reported prior to practicing gratitude weekly.

Focusing on being grateful for even one area of your life can have a positive trickle-down effect, aiding you to make better food choices. Feeling grateful can help you regulate your emotions, aiding you to feel happier. Negative feelings such as sadness, loneliness, stress, anger, fear, or even nervousness can result in emotional eating behaviors, which typically include sugary, sweet, salty, and fatty foods (all those comfort style foods).

Gratitude isn’t the miracle diet cure, but it is a great way to find more joy in your life, increase your happiness, and if it helps you to make healthier food choices, then it is gratitude for the WIN!

Here are some additional ways you can add gratitude to your everyday life!

• Share gratitude each day by posting a tweet, Facebook post or Pinterest.
• Post quotes and images that remind you to be grateful around your house.
• Add to your gratitude list daily, at least one more thing each day.
• Smile more often.
• Notice the beauty in nature each day.