Hyderabad: Similar to unscientific crash-diets that can deprive the body of essential nutrients, emotions too can cause more health hazards than everyday mental stress. Well, that’s the latest concern on the medical-graph, evidently showing a steep rising curve of cases wherein emotional overeating leads to putting on weight.
But the question is how to address this problem. Acupressure specialists believe that the “tapping method” can control this aggravating syndrome.
The theory is conveyed in a brand new pioneering book called Tapping For Weight Loss by author Jessica Ortner, who suggests “tapping” certain acupressure points on the face and body to get rid of undue hunger cravings.
Also known as the “emotional freedom technique”, tapping, according to researches is a scientifically backed procedure developed in the 1970s by psychologists who discovered that the therapy can massively lower stress and anxiety levels. Experts endorse certain focal areas like the forehead, chin and collarbone to massage instinctively when under severe stress.
Dieters will be happy to know that the treatment doesn’t put them under a strict regimen of starvation or impose any kind of restriction on particular food items. Only an external body-care like acupressure is necessary for the cure.
But what causes emotional overeating? “When stress becomes chronic, which is a common complaint in today’s fast-paced, lifestyles, it intensifies the hormone called cortisol and triggers irresistible longing for salty, snacky, sugary-sweet and high-fat foods to discharge a burst of energy and pleasure. The more uncontrolled the stress in your life, the more likely you are to fall for food to gain some emotional relief,” explains acupressure therapist and yoga trainer, Yogesh Chavan.
Doctors observe that a vast range of emotions can prompt this unwarranted appetite for fatty food. “Mainly self-pity, guilt, depression, anger about one’s own self can do the unwanted damage,” informs the expert. “Believe it or not, even sorrow may lead to unjust craving as you prefer to remain aloof all the time inside a lonely shell. You then purposely keep yourself pre-occupied with the things that you’d just like to do in solitude which could be overeating in the process,” he adds.
Emphasising on the benefits of the treatment, the exponent assures that the positives are innumerable. “Acupressure improves blood circulation by adequately distributing oxygen and nutrition to the whole body. It also reduces pain, acts as a tranquiliser, stimulates different enzyme-secreting glands and thus, helps make the human body function in the most natural and healthy way. Like holistic yoga, acupressure too can be adopted as a preventive measure to ward off unavoidable abdominal fat-accumulation,” he concedes.
Enlisting a couple of basic easy-to-apply acupressure steps in detail to lessen mental duress, anxiety and tension, the doctor advises that “the points situated specially on the head as well as the face can be pressed for this purpose to ease the crisis. For example, pressing the point at the root of the nose, just where the eyebrows usually start is good for releasing tension. While points on the temple when pressed, relax a heavy head."
He further added, "The points related to the stomach and the digestive system are by default, present on the face. And the point situated exactly on the peak of the cheek bone is useful too. Besides, the lowest point on the chin, along with the overall jaw-line is related to the intestine.”
The primary advantage of acupressure is that it’s devoid of any risk-factor. “It can be resorted to 2-3 times a week in case of redressing normal complications. But if a major problem persists, then twice-thrice a day at regular intervals is a feasible option,” he says.
