Super-sized meals, all-you-can-eat buffets and jumbo servings have made America one of the fattest countries in the world. The problem isn’t necessarily the availability of more food, but the fact that people don’t just eat when they are hungry.

According to experts at the Cleveland Clinic, 75 percent of overeating is caused by emotions – not hunger. Many emotions actually simulate hunger pains, or actual twinges of hunger help to mask painful emotions.

When trying to get fit, it is important to identify what triggers overeating and know how to avoid it.

There are five main categories that trigger overeating. They are:

Social Triggers People eat when they are around other people because they are encouraged by others to eat, in attempt to fit in, or in an attempt to mask feelings of inadequacy in social situations. Pay attention to your social habits and your surroundings while on your fitness plan. Try to avoid situations where you know you will be encouraged to overeat, or where there will be an abundance of available food.

Situational Triggers When going to the movies, do you immediately hit the candy counter for a bag of popcorn or some Milk Duds? Does the regular Tuesday meeting always mean a cream stick and maybe a jelly-filled doughnut? Do you make going out to eat a social event? Be cognizant of your habits as they pertain to eating in certain situations, and you can either modify your behavior or avoid those situations altogether.

Physiological Cues It’s very hard not to listen to what your body is telling you. If you need energy, if you feel tired, or if you start to get a headache, sometimes the natural response is to eat. If you plan and maintain a regular diet, eating more frequent, smaller meals throughout the day, you can avoid these natural cravings.

Negative Thoughts Low self worth can cause people to make up excuses for overeating, and then lead them to criticize themselves for having no willpower. If you notice this kind of behavior in yourself, you may want to visit a professional counselor, who can help you fix these issues so they don’t sabotage your ability to maintain a program f diet and exercise.

Emotional Triggers People often overeat in response to anger, depression, loneliness, guilt, jealousy, and even happiness. Other emotional triggers include anxiety, disappointment, emptiness, grief, procrastination, fear or boredom. Again, it’s important to examine how you respond to your own emotions and make sure that you don’t associate eating with emotional support.

Overeating in these situations only provides temporary relief, warns Dr. Doreen Virtue, author of “Constant Craving; Losing Your Pounds of Pain” and “The Yo-Yo Diet Syndrome.” Overeating can leave you sluggish and tired as your body attempts to break down high levels of sugar, fat and carbohydrates from emotional eating binges.

In your head ...

As you plan out your diet, also take a moment to analyze when, where, and why you eat. You may just discover that a great deal of your over-consumption is indeed “all in your head.”

Depression also leads to overeating, as people seek out comfort foods, such as mom’s chicken pot pie or cakes that remind them of happier times. “People who overeat when depressed often turn to dairy products such as chocolate ice cream and cheeses,” Virtue explains. “The chemical makeup of dairy products has a neurological effect similar to some antidepressant medications in the short term.”

Those who eat out of loneliness and emptiness will try and “fill the void” with food, often mistaking their hollow feelings for hunger. Furthermore, eating is, if nothing else, a good time waster to avoid performing unpleasant tasks.

Once someone has identified his or her eating triggers, they can then develop a plan to find alternatives to food.

The following replacements for eating are offered by the Cleveland Clinic:

• When feeling lonely, write a letter or call a friend you haven’t seen in awhile.
• When feeling lethargic, go for a walk or take a jog.
• When feeling emotionally insecure, take a bubble bath and pamper yourself.
• Other suggestions include:
  • deep breathing
  • playing cards or a board game
  • doing housework, laundry or yard work
  • ANY pleasurable activity to distract from the urge to eat

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