Ice Cream Is Not a Comfort Food; Does Not Have Anything To Do With Mood Improvement

Ice Cream Comfort Food The Myth of Comfort Food American Psychological Association Kimberly Snyder Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC Lauren Crosby

By Camille Hutchison , Parent Herald Sep 21, 11:26 am

Everyone, most especially kids, is fond of ice cream. This is due to the perfect combination of elements which are sugar, fat, and frozen water that makes the mouthwatering desert. Also, many prefer ice cream as it usually last weeks and even months in the freezer which many can enjoy over and over again.

Kimberly Snyder, a clinical nutritionist, told Everyday Health that as people reward themselves with desert-like ice cream, they trigger an addictive chemical in the body called dopamine. It is responsible for making one feel good. This eventually leads to craving as it stems from one's emotions.

In the case of infants, ice cream can only be consumed after six months of age, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests waiting until 24 months to include added sugar in the baby's diet as it is unhealthy for the growing baby.

On the other hand, experts revealed that including ice cream in the diet can increase the risk of chronic conditions like heart disease, high cholesterol, obesity, and diabetes over time. Thus, it must be consumed moderately.

Comfort food does not offer comfort, study says

According to a study called "The Myth of Comfort Food" by researchers at the University of Minnesota, the objective is to determine how true comfort food rapidly improves the mood of an individual.

According to a study published by the American Psychological Association, negative moods naturally vanish over time, thus, comfort food does not have anything to do with improving the mood. Individuals assume that having comfort food, especially ice cream allows a person to be in a good mood.

Researchers studied approximately 100 students in which they were asked what foods make them feel better when they are not in the mood, including the food they enjoy. The participants were also asked to watch an 18-minute video meant to cause them feelings of anger, fear, anxiety, and sadness. The students were given some of their comfort food afterward and were asked to fill out a questionnaire about their moods.

The study determined that the participant's moods improved over time regardless of the comfort food they consume. The study includes ice cream as comfort food. The researchers found out that ice cream and other comfort food do not affect the mood of an individual although 81 percent of participants confidently said that eating comfort food would make them feel better, per Los Angeles Times.

Why ice cream is not good for children?

The sweetener used in ice cream is actually fuelling a potentially severe liver disease in children says Deccan Chronicle. Lauren Crosby, M.D., a pediatrician at La Peer Pediatrics in Beverly Hills, California, said exposing children to ice cream at a young age can be dangerous as the desert contains ingredients that are not recommendable for infants, like honey or some potential allergens. As a matter of fact, infants are not allowed to consume honey before the one-year mark due to the risk of botulism, a form of poisoning.

Also, ice cream has different flavors and many content pieces that could actually serve as choking hazards for children. They may have something stuck on their throat and not realize what it is as the pieces in ice cream are frozen, making it a choking hazard, Fatherly says.