Nov. 4, 2019&mdash;Here's some good news if you've just been dumped. Bad breakups won't necessarily add inches to your waistline&mdash;even if you soothe the pain with a brief junk food binge. 
To look for a possible connection between breakups and weight gain, researchers asked 581 people if they had recently gone through a breakup&mdash;and if so, whether they gained or lost weight within one year of their split. Nearly 63% said their weight didn't change after their relationship ended. 
That was such a surprise that the researchers followed up with a more detailed study. This study involved 261 new participants who were asked if they'd experienced a breakup after a long-term relationship, and if so: 
<ul>
 <li>How committed their relationship was.</li>
 <li>Who initiated the breakup. </li>
 <li>Whether they tended to eat emotionally. </li>
 <li>If their weight changed. </li>
</ul>
Once again, a breakup usually didn't lead to weight gain. A solid 65% reported no change in weight after a major breakup. The only exception: Women prone to emotional eating did gain weight after a relationship ended. But that wasn't common, according to the researchers. 
Still, it may be helpful to get help from a mental health counselor if you're prone to emotional eating, the researchers said. 
The research appeared in <a href="http://evostudies.org/evos-journal/" target="_blank">EvoS Journal: The Journal of the Evolutionary Studies Consortium</a>. 
According to the researchers, overeating after a partner abandoned you may have made sense for our ancestors when gathering food was difficult.
But as these findings suggest, that's a survival instinct we've outgrown. While we may drown our sorrows by overeating for a day or two, modern humans don't tend to pack on pounds after a relationship fizzles&mdash;even a serious one. 
How to get past food cravings
Are unhealthy foods calling your name? <a href="[BASEDOMAIN]/healthinfo/Story.aspx?StoryId=dff77142-7d2e-428e-b956-dc5c58617f20">Check out these tips to regain control</a>.

Will a bad breakup leave you with unwanted pounds? 

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