Stress-induced eating: an alternative method for inducing ego-threatening stress

This study was designed to assess the effectiveness of a modified Stroop te st as a method of inducing ego-threatening stress in dieters. Twenty female s completed a Stroop task and watched a fearful film, and then consumed ice cream, ad libitum, under the guise of a tasting-test. It was predicted tha t the Stroop task would trigger greater consumption of ice cream than a fea rful film, and that this effect would be more pronounced for binge-eaters t han non-binge eaters. More ice cream was consumed following the Stroop task , however both binge-eaters and non-binge-eaters consumed more ice cream af ter the Stroop task than the film-task. This data suggests that the ego-thr eatening Stroop test has potential as a standardized method for use in stud ies of stress-induced eating. (C) 2001 Academic Press.