A influência do luto no comportamento alimentar e suas implicações nas condutas nutricionais

Abstract

The lack of preparation for dealing with death and the absence of the loved one may lead to organic and psychological reactions that, due to the adaptive capacity of the individual to the period of mourning, may result in interference in feeding habits and consequently on the person's nutritional status. This article addresses the effects of recent mourning on feeding behavior, followed by the analysis of the dietary interview from various standpoints. This includes the postmortem nutrition and feeding habits of the bereaved and the implications of this process on hunger, on thirst and on family cooking, with a focus on nutritional behavior and on the decisions that surround it. This is a review of the literature on the theme of death and mourning, which seeks to contextualize this theme around reflections based on this experience. It emphasizes the interaction of nutrition with the science of thanatology, which is an area still not properly examined and lacking study. The identification of this influence and its implications enables better planning of food strategies, contributing greatly to actions for coping and support during mourning.

“A mesa que encolheu”: a perspectiva alimentar das mães que perderam filhos

“…As alterações de peso relatadas pelas mães coincidem com o esperado para essa situação, uma vez que uma perda de peso pode ocorrer em enlutados recentes 1,20,21 e na angústia psicológica 22 . Por outro lado, o grau de ansiedade e persistência do estresse experimentado na perda do ente querido pode desencadear a compulsão alimentar 1 . Falas como buscava o que faltava na alimentação enunciam comportamentos de angustiante refúgio no alimento, por consequência à falta do filho.…”

“…No eixo temático o confronto com a cadeira vazia, os sentidos e os significados das falas nos revelam que, mesmo com o passar dos anos, a cadeira vazia continuou sendo um obstáculo enfrentado por mães. Diante do luto de filhos, a cadeira vazia representa muito, pois é no ato de posicionar-se à mesa que a família se confronta com o vazio da cadeira e com tudo o que ela simboliza enquanto presença e ausência 1 .…”

“…The influence of grief on the relationship between mothers and food was verified in several ways, either in the loss of appetite, the body weight change or in the absence of the child in the social interactions during shared meals, which represent the challenges of the mother facing the "table that shrank," calling for the mothers to find new meanings for eating. It is understood that the relationship of the bereaved mother with food is surrounded by conflicts that introdução O processo do luto, a depender de suas particularidades -tipo, causa do óbito e vínculo afetivo estabelecido -e do mecanismo individual de enfrentamento, desencadeia uma série de reações no organismo que têm implicações na alimentação 1 . Não somente no aspecto fisiológico, mas também no comportamental, haja vista o luto ser uma vivência que aparece com uma forte exigência de ressignificação do mundo-da-vida, onde o que é perdido pelo enlutado não é apenas um ente querido, mas, também, formas próprias de ser-no-mundo 2 .…”

Eating approach of bereaved individuals: A protocol proposal

“…Facing the loss of a beloved one and the suppression of living with this person, people may be affected in their way of being [5,6]. The death of a beloved one, depending on the established affective bond, the emotional regulation profile and the individual coping mechanism, triggers a series of reactions in the fields of emotion and reasoning [7]. This situation results in changes in mood and behavior patterns, affecting the bereaved individuals' relationship to food and, consequently, altering food consumption [7].…”

“…The death of a beloved one, depending on the established affective bond, the emotional regulation profile and the individual coping mechanism, triggers a series of reactions in the fields of emotion and reasoning [7]. This situation results in changes in mood and behavior patterns, affecting the bereaved individuals' relationship to food and, consequently, altering food consumption [7]. Under these conditions, conducing food surveys brings special challenges other than those inherent in research methods and techniques [2,[8][9][10].…”