According to research, going through a stressful situation will cause cravings for less-healthy, high-fat foods. Ironically, stress also causes women to metabolize these types of unhealthy meals much more slowly. It is a lot harder to want to eat healthier foods when the stress of the day weighs down. This especially happens when there is no energy for making a healthy meal and fast food becomes the quickest option.
On average, women who are under stress can gain up to 11 pounds per year than a woman not under stress and eating the same thing.
For more on health and stress studies, visit cnn.com