Let’s Turn Emotional Eating On Its Head

“Headline anxiety” around the upcoming election is a new label for the ancient experience of feeling overwhelmed during chaotic times. Decades before doomscrolling, psychologists called the sometimes-obsessive dread “mean world syndrome” and linked it to television’s vivid imagery — but news apprehension is primal and universal. So too is one of the tools we underuse to address it: food.

I covered Pennsylvania’s presidential election for The Washington Post in 2020. My anxiety-management tools needed bolstering when I was offered a selection of bullet-proof vests for reporting (slim fit would look better but wouldn’t stop rifle fire — choices, choices). My primary beat at The Post was food so thankfully I knew about the science of eating for emotional well-being. I’m leaning into it again this election season.