Understanding Heart Hunger

This information is general in nature and does not replace personalised professional advice. Please contact your healthcare team if you have any questions or concerns.

Author: Madison Bruhn, Accredited Practising Dietitian 

Peer reviewed by: Andrea Jasper, Accredited Practising Dietitian

Last reviewed: April 2026

What is heart hunger?

Sometimes, the urge to eat is tied to your emotions. This type of hunger leads to eating which is often referred to as ‘emotional eating’. At Prospero Health, we call this ‘heart hunger’. This type of eating makes you feel better emotionally, at least in the short term. It is usually a coping strategy that develops over time to manage uncomfortable emotions [1]. It differs from ‘Head Hunger” where there is no emotional trigger [2]. You might notice heart hunger when you: 

• Eat to cope with stress, boredom, sadness or loneliness (ie. “comfort eating”) [1,3]. 

• Use food as a reward [3].

• Have a preference for highly palatable, energy-dense foods [1,3,4].

• Are finding your emotions hard to manage [1,3]. 

Why does heart hunger happen?

Heart hunger is a normal human experience. Everyone eats for emotional reasons at times. It can happen for a range of reasons, including: 

• Food can sometimes be used to soothe difficult feelings [1,3].

• You may have learned to link food with comfort or reward (for example, having a treat after a hard day or being given food as a reward growing up) [3].

• Over time, certain situations, environments or routines (such as watching TV or feeling bored) can become linked with eating, even if your body is not physically hungry [3].

• Eating certain foods can trigger “feel good” chemicals in your brain (such as dopamine), which can improve your mood for a short time. This can strengthen patterns of emotional eating over time [3,5,6]. 

• During obesity treatment, changes in appetite or routines may bring up more emotions, making heart hunger more noticeable [6]. 

What does heart hunger feel like?

Heart hunger often:

• Comes on suddenly or feels urgent [8,9].

• Is linked to emotions or mood [1,3,7].

• Can involve specific cravings, often for comfort foods (i.e. usually easy-to-eat, higher-calorie foods) [7,8,9].

• May lead to eating past fullness [7,8].

• May still be present even after you have eaten (i.e. eating doesn’t necessarily stop the hunger or desire to eat more)[7,8]. 

• May suddenly disappear if your emotional state changes (eg. with a distraction or shift in mood) [7]. 

How to manage heart hunger?

There are different ways to respond to heart hunger. The goal is not to avoid it completely, but to better understand and support your needs. You can:

• Pause and check in:

  • Ask yourself: What am I feeling right now? What do I need?

• Name the emotion: I feel stressed, I feel lonely, I feel overwhelmed.

• Meet the need in another way (when possible):

  • Rest if you are tired. 

  • Talk to someone you trust.

  • Take a break.

  • Try calming activities such as mindfulness, journalling, meditation or gentle movement. 

• If you choose to eat, that is okay, but eat mindfully:

  • Eat slowly, taking a break between each small bite.

  • Deliberately choose a nutritious food first (eg. something that is high in protein and fibre such as a boiled egg on a slice of wholegrain toast).

  • Notice how you feel before, during and after eating. 

  • Avoid guilt or judgment about this eating. Use it as an opportunity to understand more about your emotional state.

• Track your heart hunger:

  • Note down feelings and factors that may have triggered these feelings. 

  • Build an understanding of the emotional triggers that may be leading to your heart hunger.

• Be kind to yourself:

Emotional eating is not a failure. It is a common response and may be a sign that you need extra support or care. 

When to get support?

If eating feels closely tied to your emotions or hard to manage, a dietitian or psychologist can support you [10]. Learning to understand heart hunger can help you respond to your needs in new ways and is an important part of your long-term health and obesity treatment journey.

You can also read our “The Role of Dietitians in Your Obesity Treatment Journey” and “The Role of Psychologists in Your Obesity Treatment Journey” factsheet to learn more about how they can support you.

References

1. Dakanalis A, Mentzelou M, Papadopoulou SK, Papandreou D, Spanoudaki M, Vasios GK, et al. The Association of Emotional Eating with Overweight/Obesity, Depression, Anxiety/Stress, and Dietary Patterns: A Review of the Current Clinical Evidence. Nutrients. 2023;15(5). https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15051173

2. Dhurandhar EJ, Maki KC, Dhurandhar NV, Kyle TK, Yurkow S, Hawkins MAW, et al. Food noise: definition, measurement, and future research directions. Nutrition & Diabetes. 2025;15(1):30. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41387-025-00382-x

3. Ha O-R, Lim S-L. The role of emotion in eating behavior and decisions. Frontiers in Psychology. 2023;Volume 14 - 2023. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1265074

4. Chmurzynska A, Mlodzik-Czyzewska MA, Radziejewska A, Wiebe DJ. Hedonic Hunger Is Associated with Intake of Certain High-Fat Food Types and BMI in 20- to 40-Year-Old Adults. The Journal of Nutrition. 2021;151(4):820-5.

5. Volkow ND, Wang GJ, Maynard L, Jayne M, Fowler JS, Zhu W, et al. Brain dopamine is associated with eating behaviors in humans. Int J Eat Disord. 2003;33(2):136-42. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.10118

6. Singh M. Mood, food, and obesity. Front Psychol. 2014;5:925. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00925

7. Fuente González CE, Chávez-Servín JL, de la Torre-Carbot K, Ronquillo González D, Aguilera Barreiro M, Ojeda Navarro LR. Relationship between Emotional Eating, Consumption of Hyperpalatable Energy-Dense Foods, and Indicators of Nutritional Status: A Systematic Review. J Obes. 2022;2022:4243868. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/4243868

8. Brisbane Obesity Clinic (2025). Emotional Hunger vs Physical Hunger. https://www.brisbaneobesityclinic.com.au/emotional-hunger-vs-physical-hunger/

9. Brisbane Weight Loss Surgery (2026). Mind vs. Stomach: Telling Emotional Eating Apart from True Hunger. https://brisbaneweightlosssurgery.com.au/mind-vs-stomach-telling-emotional-eating-apart-from-true-hunger/

10. Nemours KidsHealth (2026). Emotional Eating. https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/emotional-eating.html#:~:text=Counselors%20and%20therapists%20can%20help,through%20exercise%20instead%20of%20food