[_yb2s]

Yes, probably a feedback loop. There is lots of research showing modern food is engineered for high "food reward value" which overcomes our satiety mechanisms, and is essentially addictive (e.g. https://www.stephanguyenet.com/thehungrybrain/). Not to say that modern processed food isn't also quite unhealthy - with mental health implications, I suspect it is the food reward aspect itself that is mostly responsible for what you are talking about.

This I think has simply caused food to essentially replace alcohol as the default way to escape painful emotions- whereas the men traumatized in the big wars of the 20th century often became regular binge drinkers afterwards, I think food has largely replaced that.