--- title: Study Links PTSD With Food Addiction in Women description: A study has found that women suffering from the worst symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder are twice as likely to be addicted to food canonical: https://time.com/3395346/ptsd-food-addiction-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-over-eating-obesity/ author: Helen Regan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-09-18T09:36:32.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T10:15:40.438Z article:section: Health og:title: Study Links PTSD With Food Addiction og:description: A new study finds that women who suffer from the worst symptoms of PTSD are twice as likely to be addicted to food. og:url: https://time.com/3395346/ptsd-food-addiction-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-over-eating-obesity/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84b27599c0a22627/6986a3fcadae446777545036/480823153.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: 480823153 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Study Links PTSD With Food Addiction twitter:description: A new study finds that women who suffer from the worst symptoms of PTSD are twice as likely to be addicted to food. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84b27599c0a22627/6986a3fcadae446777545036/480823153.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # PTSD Is Linked to Food Addiction in Women, New Study Finds by [Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Sep 18, 2014 9:36 AM UTC  Full length of overweight woman measuring weight against wall at home Full length of overweight woman measuring weight against wall at homeGetty Images by [Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Sep 18, 2014 9:36 AM UTC A new study published in [_JAMA Psychiatry_](http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1904804) has found that women who suffer from the worst symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are twice as likely to be addicted to food than those who do not, [Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/17/us-ptsd-food-idUSKBN0HC2B420140917) reports. Researchers link symptoms of PTSD in women to a psychological dependence on food, or food addiction. But the study doesn’t mean that there is a direct connection between PTSD and overeating. “We don’t know if it’s causal. It’s an interesting relationship and probably worth following up,” Susan Mason, from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, told Reuters. To find out whether women were more likely to have a food addiction, in 2008 researchers asked 49,408 female nurses about PTSD symptoms. A year later they then asked the same group about food addiction. They found the more symptoms of PTSD a woman had, the more likely it was for her to be addicted to food. The findings could help doctors treat women with eating disorders, reports _Reuters_. “Clinicians may be able to look for that information to deliver better care,” Mason said. Researchers still don’t know what occurs first — food addiction or PTSD — but they hope the study will help them connect the dots. “I just want this to add to a lot of research that people’s weight status is not just a symptom of willpower and education,” Mason said. “There may be psychological factors in play too.” \[[_Reuters_](http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/17/us-ptsd-food-idUSKBN0HC2B420140917)\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3395346/ptsd-food-addiction-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-over-eating-obesity/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3395346/ptsd-food-addiction-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-over-eating-obesity/"},"headline":"PTSD Is Linked to Food Addiction in Women, New Study Finds","datePublished":"2014-09-18T09:36:32.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T10:15:40.438Z","description":"\"Weight status is not just a symptom of willpower and education,\" a researcher says. \"There may be psychological factors in play too\"","url":"https://time.com/3395346/ptsd-food-addiction-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-over-eating-obesity/","keywords":["Mental Health/Psychology","PTSD","study","Addiction","health"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84b27599c0a22627/6986a3fcadae446777545036/480823153.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Helen Regan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/helen-regan/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84b27599c0a22627/6986a3fcadae446777545036/480823153.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"480823153","caption":"480823153","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/mental-healthpsychology/","name":"Mental Health/Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3395346/ptsd-food-addiction-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-over-eating-obesity/","name":"PTSD Is Linked to Food Addiction in Women, New Study Finds"}}]}] ```