Comfort food has been shown in research to be particularly valuable in reducing our sense of loneliness and feelings of isolation. In the study, when individuals who had a strong social network, they chose comfort food when feeling isolated. Since eating is so often a communal activity, our favorite foods can often trigger memories of times when we felt a sense of connection and belonging. Another study in 2015 showed that you don’t even have to eat the foods to have this experience! In that study, which was conducted at Virginia Commonwealth University, individuals were asked to link certain aromas to certain foods. It was shown that the positive effects of eating comfort food could be mimicked even by just smelling the aroma of your favorite food.
