Understanding the Fear of Eating in Front of Others

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The fear of eating in front of others can wreak havoc on your social life, work prospects, and adjustment to college. Socializing usually includes some form of food and drink. Business meetings sometimes take place over lunch or dinner. College cafeterias can be crowded.

If eating and drinking in front of others causes you extreme anxiety, you may either endure these situations with great discomfort or avoid them altogether. Avoidance creates a vicious cycle in that the more narrow your life becomes, the harder you will find it to eat and drink in front of others. You may find yourself turning down invitations or making choices that don't require eating in front of others.

Triggers for a Fear of Eating in Front of Others

Fear of eating and drinking in front of others can be triggered by a wide variety of situations, foods, and dining companions.

  • Situation: Some people feel anxious in every situation in which they must eat or drink in front of others, while others fear specific settings such as formal banquets or dinner parties.
  • Company: Certain individuals become anxious only when eating in front of authority figures. On the other hand, some may be anxious even when eating in front of people whom they know well.
  • Atmosphere: Some may become more fearful if they are in a crowded restaurant as compared to dining in a quiet setting with only a few companions.

For most people with a fear of eating, the level of anxiety escalates in proportion to how difficult the food is to eat. Finger foods are usually the least threatening. Foods such as salads, soup, and dishes with sauces are usually the most anxiety-provoking.

Potentially messy foods such as spaghetti will be more anxiety-provoking because there is a greater likelihood of embarrassment while eating. Beverages do not usually influence the level of fear, although drinks that are more likely to stain, such as red wine, may provoke more anxiety.

Types of Worries

If you have a fear of eating or drinking in front of others, there is probably a long list of embarrassing events that you worry might happen in these situations. They may include some of the following:

  • Your hands will shake.
  • You will spill your food or drink.
  • You will choke and draw attention to yourself.
  • You will vomit or lose control of your bowels.
  • You will look unattractive while eating.
  • You will become flushed from eating spicy food.

The Root Cause of Anxiety

Underlying all of this anxiety is the fear of being negatively evaluated by others. A 2015 study found that this fear of negative evaluation explained part of the relationship between social anxiety and aspects of disordered eating.

In addition, a 2012 study found that social appearance anxiety (the fear that you will be negatively evaluated for your appearance) may predict symptoms of both social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms. As a result, modifying those underlying negative beliefs or negative social evaluation fears is needed to treat this type of disordered eating, rather than a focus on specific issues with eating.

Treating a Fear of Eating in Front of Others

If difficulty eating in front of others is causing significant impairment in your daily life, and you have not been diagnosed with a mental health disorder, consider making an appointment with your family doctor. Your doctor can help assess the situation and coordinate treatment.

When the fear of eating or drinking in front of others is a symptom of social anxiety disorder or SAD (about 20% of people diagnosed with SAD have this fear), treatment in the form of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) or cognitive-behavioral group therapy (CBGT) is usually recommended.

CBT involves identifying negative automatic thoughts and replacing them with more rational thinking patterns. In addition, some form of exposure training usually complements this practice of cognitive restructuring. Exposure may mean actual eating and drinking scenarios in which other group participants act as dining companions.

If your anxiety about eating in front of others is due to an eating disorder, or a combination of an eating disorder and SAD, then treatment will need to be tailored to your unique situation. In addition, if you experience generalized SAD, or your symptoms do not respond to therapy, medication such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) may be advised.

A Word From Verywell

If you are experiencing difficulty eating in front of others, consider the source of your anxiety. Are you worried about how others will perceive you or more worried about eating the actual food itself? Ask yourself these questions to better understand your own disordered eating patterns and what the next steps may be.

3 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. Menatti AR, Deboer LB, Weeks JW, Heimberg RG. Social anxiety and associations with eating psychopathology: Mediating effects of fears of evaluation. Body Image. 2015;14:20-8. doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2015.02.003

  2. Levinson CA, Rodebaugh TL. Social anxiety and eating disorder comorbidity: The role of negative social evaluation fears. Eat Behav. 2012;13(1):27-35. doi:10.1016/j.eatbeh.2011.11.006

  3. Kaye WH, Bulik CM, Thornton L, Barbarich N, Masters K. Comorbidity of anxiety disorders with anorexia and bulimia nervosa. Am J Psychiatry. 2004;161(12):2215-2221. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.161.12.2215

Additional Reading
  • Antony MM, Swinson RP. The Shyness and Social Anxiety Workbook. New Harbinger, 2008.

  • Heimberg R, Becker, R. Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Social Phobia: Basic Mechanisms and Clinical Strategies. Guilford, 2002.

  • Noyes R, Hoehn-Saric R. The Anxiety Disorders. Cambridge University Press, 1998.

By Arlin Cuncic, MA
Arlin Cuncic, MA, is the author of "Therapy in Focus: What to Expect from CBT for Social Anxiety Disorder" and "7 Weeks to Reduce Anxiety." She has a Master's degree in psychology.