Guilty or not? Feelings of guilt about food among college women

The aim of this study was to assess how frequently and under what circumstances college women (n = 55) experience feelings of guilt about food. Data were collected by means of a 1-week food diary. Results showed that a majority of the sample regularly experienced mild feelings of guilt. These feelings were particularly likely to result from eating between-meal snacks in the afternoon or after-dinner eating in the evening. Eating candy and ice cream accounted for the most ‘guilty moments’. Eating in certain social situations (e.g., eating at a friend's house) induced relatively more often feelings of guilt.