Perhaps those who engage in emotional eating will do so regardless of the availability of planned meals or more
convenient unplanned meals.
Several important questions emerge from this study. Perceived stress was associated with haphazard planning and
emotional eating. Are other variables mediating this relationship? What interventions might contribute to healthier
eating patterns in African Americans? Furthermore, African American females are more prone to stress-related eating
than males. What might account for this finding? Finally, is stress and eating a one-way relationship among the
overweight or obese or is it a circular problem? Does stress contribute to obesity, does obesity contribute to stress, or
does an interaction exist?
As obesity grows as a public health problem, the challenge that health researchers and professionals will face is to
develop more effective and innovative strategies for managing psychological stress which reduce stress-induced eating.
The problem of obesity involves a variety of factors in physical, psychosocial, emotional, and even spiritual domains.
Long-term solutions to this problem are likely to require a comprehensive approach and healthy lifestyle changes
across these same domains.