The Role of Emotional Eating in the Living Experiences of Young Obese Iranian Women: A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Study

The high prevalence of emotional eating in obese women indicates the importance of the role of emotional eating in their weight gain. The aim of the present study is to explain the role of emotional eating in the lived experiences of young obese Iranian women.

This study was performed by qualitative method with hermeneutic phenomenological approach. Participants in this study were 17 young women living in Kermanshah or Karaj. These participants had emotional eating and a body mass index of 30 or higher. They were selected using purposive sampling method with maximum diversity approach. Data were collected through in-depth individual and face- to- face interviews and analyzed using the seven-step method of  Dickelman et al.

In the analysis of participants' lived experiences; A major theme called the " compromising role "  was revealed, which showed. Emotional eating plays a compromising role in coping with life's sufferings and problems. This theme was formed by 9 sub themes, which are: avoiding of negative thoughts and emotions, relaxing negative emotions, relieving emotional hunger, symbol of self-compassion, invigorating role, healing role, in shelter of eating,  companion of feeling lonely, in search of food security.

The results of this study identified the instantaneous and transient functions that emotional eating had in the lives of participants. These functions in the formation of a cyclical pattern of behavior, namely; Frequent emotional eating, the main consequence of which is weight gain, play a key role and hinder the effectiveness of weight loss programs.