The survey asked 2,000 people how their mood influenced their eating habits, and discovered that many young people - and adults - ate for comfort.
Peter Smith, hospital director at the Priory Hospital Roehampton, said the findings were a surprise to him.
"The reason 43 per cent of the population is eating is not because they are hungry, but because they have negative feelings. Many also feel guilty afterwards, and this can get people into a negative spiral where the more they eat the more they feel bad - so they eat more again."
The poll found that 47 per cent of young people turned to food when bored and one in four young people felt guilty after eating. It also found that 15 per cent were unable to stop once they began.
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