When we eat comfort foods, it brings pack happy memories from our past. Psychological research shows that smells are powerfully linked to areas in the brain that are associated with memory and emotional experiences. In these times of uncertainty, making and eating comfort foods can offer a sense of structure and control. We have control over the foods we are making and eating, and we also have a little more control over how we feel.
Our brain tells us that eating that piece of homemade bread or pasta will make us feel good. Be mindful of how often and how much. The Oxford English Dictionary, though, was wrong. Regardless of when people found the words to describe it, though, the concept itself is ageless.
Sad child may overeat. Or, put another way, certain foods promise solace as much as they do fuel. Is that the feeling of a soul being soothed, or just the onset of a mac-and-cheese-induced food coma? According to Shira Gabriel, an associate professor of psychology at the State University of New York, Buffalo, the best way to understand the question is to shift the focus away from the food itself.
Bobby Flay and Emeril Lagasse turned every home cook into a professional chef, experimenting with new ingredients and creating picture-perfect plates. We rallied around comfort food again during the financial crisis, and we are stocking up on it today. Science has tried to explain this persistent draw.
Many dishes are high in fat or sugar, substances that the body can process into temporary stress relief. Psychologists have explored a more complicated connection between food and individual memory, theorizing that well-loved dishes can evoke the same feelings of security or contentment they did when the diner was younger.
Her study found that, although consumers predict that they will reach for familiar flavors in times of transition, the opposite is actually true. Change begets change, the study concluded, and consumers tend to choose more novel options in moments of personal upheaval. In the s, comfort foods were idiosyncratic and solitary appetites, but over the years, as cookbooks and restaurants codified the menu, they became a communal experience. Comfort food, the psychologists Jordan D.
Troisi and Shira Gabriel write in Psychological Science , feeds our fundamental need to belong. Join our new membership program on Patreon today. JSTOR is a digital library for scholars, researchers, and students. By: April White. May 30, December 1, Share Tweet Email Print. Audio brought to you by curio. Weekly Newsletter. Have a correction or comment about this article? Overview Specialty Care. Resources for Women. New Patient? Patient Services. Customer Service Hours. Refer a Patient Giving.
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