Research Findings: Stop Emotional Eating Weight-Loss Pilot Program

"I know in my heart that it is because of the HeartMath tools and using the emWave® that I was able to lose 75 lbs. Before HeartMath, I had yo-yoed in my weight, but the most I had ever lost was 15 pounds and then gained it back. Now, it has been more than 18 months since I started and I have no problem keeping the weight off." —A. Salinas, California health-care marketing and PR executive who credits the HeartMath System with changing her life.

The findings are in from a weight-loss pilot program developed by HeartMath in which volunteers self-administered a six-week regimen that incorporated HeartMath tools and the emWave^® technology.

Findings:

There was slightly more than a 5-pound average weight reduction among the 19 participants who completed the Stop Emotional Eating Weight Loss Pilot Program during the second half of 2008, though a number reported approximately 12-pound losses. Average waist size decreased just over 2 inches and hip circumference was reduced on average by nearly 1.8 inches. Read more.

Here is what some of the weight-loss pilot program volunteer participants said:
(names are withheld to maintain privacy)

"It’s a nice alternative to fad diets and other ‘temporary fixes.’ "

"Give it a try – no drugs, holistic, with broader life benefits in stress management."

"I am more in charge of my stress now," one participant, stated following the program.

"I am more able to deal with the workload I have, and I have learned to turn off the work and breathe. The weight-loss is not as important as controlling the emotional chaos I was experiencing. I feel healthier, more energized and I am sleeping better."

"I would recommend it because the eating (for me) is a by product of something else that’s going on in my life. So if I manage that, I can mange eating. That’s why I use emWave^®, for centering myself…"

From ‘Emotional Eating’ to ‘Intuitive Eating’

Researchers with the Institute of HeartMath and other entities have determined that for a great number of people stress provokes "emotional eating" and weight gain. Emotional eating, which is simply eating for a reason other than actually being hungry, comprises an estimated 75% of overeating, according to some estimates. "Eating is so strongly connected with our feelings (be they happy, sad, anxious, lonely, overloaded or depressed)," IHM founder Doc Childre wrote in the introduction to Stop Emotional Eating, "that the balance between heart, mind and emotions has to be included in our diet commitments and intentions." Read more.

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• The Science of Intuition: Developing Yours with Dr. Rollin McCraty, Ph.D.
• How Practicing Coherence Enhances Cognitive Functions and Helps Offset Cognitive Decline with Dr. Rollin McCraty, Ph.D.
• Energetic Connectivity – The Heart Field Environment with Dr. Rollin McCraty, Ph.D.
• The Biology of Belief: Mind Over Genes by Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.

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Interested in other Institute of HeartMath Research Publication, go to the IHM Research Library.