We live in a world where multitasking feels like a badge of honor but what if it’s silently making us less productive, and multitasking makes you snack more?
We talk about how busy we are, how we’re “great at juggling,” and how we can do three things at once without breaking a sweat. But what if multitasking is not actually helping us?
When I read the research, I realized that multitasking might be doing far more harm than we think, both mentally and physically. So let’s unpack what’s really going on when you try to do too many things at once.
Table of Contents
What Multitasking Really Looks Like in Everyday Life
If you’re like most people, multitasking sneaks into your life in ways that seem harmless. Maybe you recognize a few of these:
- You’re attending a virtual meeting while checking your phone for notifications or headlines.
- You’re trying to manage two work projects at once, switching between tabs, messages, and spreadsheets.
- You’re listening to a podcast or audiobook while cooking dinner, folding laundry, or helping your kids with homework.
- You’re checking your email in the middle of writing a report or replying to messages during a video call.
These might feel like small examples, but together they form a pattern that keeps your brain in a constant state of divided attention. And that divided attention comes with a real cost. Instead of doing more, you end up doing less, with lower accuracy, less focus, and more fatigue.
7 Reasons Why Multitasking Makes You Snack More
1. Your Brain Can’t Truly Do Two Things at Once
When you “multitask,” your brain isn’t performing tasks simultaneously, it’s switching rapidly between them.
Each switch costs focus and energy, leaving you mentally scattered and physically drained. This cognitive load makes you crave quick energy sources like sugar and carbs.
2. Task-Switching Causes Decision Fatigue
Every time you shift focus, your brain uses up willpower and self-control. By the end of the day, you have less mental energy left for intentional choices… like saying no to the snack drawer or choosing a healthy meal.
3. Multitasking Triggers a Stress Response
Constantly juggling tasks keeps your nervous system in a mild fight-or-flight state. Elevated cortisol and adrenaline increase hunger signals and push your body toward comfort foods as a quick form of stress relief.
4. You Lose Awareness of Hunger and Fullness Cues
When your attention is divided, you don’t register how much you’ve eaten or when you’re satisfied. That lack of mindfulness leads to mindless eating like grabbing handfuls of snacks without realizing it until the bag is empty.
5. It Lowers Productivity and Focus
Researchers at the University of Southern California found that multitasking activates competing regions in the prefrontal cortex, making it harder to complete complex tasks accurately.
The result: more mistakes, more rework, and more frustration that can lead to emotional eating.
6. It Temporarily Drops Your IQ
In studies, participants who multitasked scored up to 15 points lower on IQ tests, which is about the same drop seen after staying awake all night. That cognitive dip increases impulsive behavior, including the impulse to reach for fast, high-reward foods.
7. Single-Tasking Reduces Stress and Cravings
When you focus on one task at a time, your brain works more efficiently and your body’s stress response decreases. This calmer state naturally reduces the urge to snack, boosts productivity, and helps you feel more in control throughout the day.
The Science Behind Multitasking and Brain Overload
The brain isn’t wired to do multiple complex tasks at the same time. Sure, you can walk and talk simultaneously because one is automatic. But when two tasks require active attention, like writing an email while listening to a presentation, your brain isn’t actually doing them simultaneously. It’s switching between them, back and forth, over and over.
Every time your brain switches, it uses extra energy. You lose mental momentum, and it takes longer to reorient yourself to what you were doing. Researchers call this “switching cost,” and it can add up to hours of wasted productivity each week.
According to a study from the University of Southern California, your brain’s prefrontal cortex handles focused attention. When you’re working on one task, both sides of the prefrontal cortex collaborate smoothly. But when you try to focus on two things at once, the two sides split their duties. That split causes confusion, reduced accuracy, and more mistakes.
In fact, one famous study found that multitasking can cause your IQ to temporarily drop by up to 15 points, similar to the effect of staying awake all night.
In other words, working while distracted can make you function at the level of an elementary school child, even if you feel like you’re “powering through.”
[RELATED : 9 Healthy Morning Habits for More Energy All Day]
How Multitasking Increases Stress and Exhaustion
Another hidden side effect of multitasking is how it affects your nervous system. Constantly switching between tasks keeps your body in a low-level state of stress. You might not notice it at first, but over time, you’ll feel it as mental fatigue, restlessness, or even physical tension.
When your brain never gets a chance to complete a full cycle of focus and rest, it’s like leaving too many browser tabs open on your computer. Each one takes up bandwidth, and before long, the whole system starts lagging. That’s exactly what happens in your mind.
This ongoing stress response increases cortisol, a hormone that raises blood sugar and energy temporarily. But once cortisol levels drop, your body looks for a quick fix, often in the form of food. Specifically, high-fat and high-sugar foods that provide an immediate dopamine boost.
The Link Between Multitasking, Stress, and Snacking
Here’s where it gets interesting. Studies from Michigan State University have shown that people who multitask frequently, especially when switching between digital devices, tend to snack more often and make less healthy food choices.
Why? Because when your attention is divided, you’re less mindful of what and how much you’re eating. You might reach for a handful of chips without realizing it, or eat a full meal without registering that you’re full.
At the same time, stress hormones make your body crave quick energy. When your brain is working overtime, it burns glucose faster. That drop in blood sugar can trigger cravings for refined carbohydrates and processed snacks.
It becomes a cycle: multitask → stress → snack → regret → repeat. And every time you repeat the cycle, your brain reinforces the pattern.
Why Single-Tasking Works Better (and Feels Better)
The good news is that there’s a simple, research-backed way to reverse this habit. It’s not complicated, and you can start using it right now.
Try this: set a timer for 15 to 30 minutes and focus on one single task. No phone. No tabs. No notifications. Just one focused block of work. When the timer rings, take a 5- to 10-minute break. Stand up, stretch, walk around, or grab a drink of water. Then set the timer again and start the next block.
This “focus-break-focus” rhythm is often called the Pomodoro technique, and it’s one of the most effective productivity strategies ever studied. It allows your brain to stay in deep focus without burnout, while the short breaks give your nervous system time to recover.
What’s even better is that people who use this rhythm report less stress, fewer cravings, and more satisfaction at the end of the day. When you slow down and focus, you finish more in less time, and you don’t feel the need to self-soothe with snacks.
Mindful Focus, Mindful Eating
When you practice single-tasking, you naturally become more mindful in other areas of your life. You start noticing details again, like how your food tastes, how your body feels, and when you’re actually hungry. That awareness helps break the connection between stress and snacking.
If you tend to eat while working, try this simple experiment for a few days:
- Eat all meals and snacks away from your desk or devices.
- Put down your utensils between bites.
- Notice the texture, flavor, and smell of your food.
- Take a few deep breaths before and after eating.
You’ll likely find that you eat less, feel more satisfied, and have more steady energy throughout the day. That’s because your brain and digestive system are finally in sync, instead of competing for your attention.
How to Train Your Brain to Focus Again
Like any skill, focus improves with practice. If you’ve spent years multitasking, your brain has adapted to constant stimulation. Notifications, pings, and alerts have conditioned you to crave distraction. The key to reversing this is creating small daily rituals that strengthen your attention muscle.
Try adding these focus habits to your routine:
- Start your day without screens for the first 30 minutes. Give your brain time to wake up naturally.
- Batch similar tasks. Answer all emails at once instead of checking constantly.
- Set boundaries for notifications. Turn off alerts or check messages at set times.
- Create a visual cue. When you start a focus session, close all other tabs or place your phone in another room.
- Reward yourself. After a full hour of focused work, enjoy a short walk or a healthy snack.
The goal isn’t to eliminate all multitasking overnight, it’s to build awareness and choose when to focus fully.
The Bottom Line
Multitasking might feel productive, but science shows it’s costing us more than we realize. It drains mental energy, increases stress, and leads to mindless eating. The next time you feel tempted to juggle tasks, remember that your brain performs best when it can focus on one thing at a time.
By slowing down and practicing single-tasking, you’ll not only boost productivity, you’ll also reduce stress, improve memory, and naturally make healthier choices. In a world that celebrates busyness, learning to focus is a quiet superpower.
References:
), //www.fitnesslifestylellc.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/3076514.jpg))
), https://www.fitnesslifestylellc.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/3076514.jpg))
