I promised I would have a post about this, so here it is. I have read countless articles about emotional eating and pinpointing its triggers. Usually, if we’re not actually hungry, there’s some sort of emotional connection when we eat anyway. With sadness, we may turn to comfort food; with fond memories, we may turn to fatty treats; with camaraderie, we may turn to deep-fried pub fare.

For me, it’s boredom. Not necessarily emotional boredom, but boredom of the mouth. I feel like I always need something in my mouth to taste, suck on, enjoy. I’ve found this can be quite dangerous to my health when I make the wrong decisions (oh chocolate, how I love thee), so I’ve had to come up with a few ways to combat the problem.

The best solution is sugarless gum (Wrigley’s Cinnamon). This keeps my mouth busy and occupied for hours. Sugarfree candy and Tic Tac mints are also helpful. I love Celestial Seasoning’s Black Cherry Berry tea. With a little sweetener, that practically tastes like candy itself. There’s probably something I’m ignoring about artificial sweetener, but I hope a few pieces of gum won’t kill me.