Dysfunctional eating behaviours, anxiety and depression in Italian boys and girls: the role of mass media

Objective: Extensive research has implicated identification with characters in mass media in the emergence of disordered eating behavior in adolescents. We explored the possible influence of the models offered by television (TV) on adolescents’ body image, body uneasiness, eating-disordered behavior, depression, and anxiety. Methods: Three hundred and one adolescents (aged 14-19) from southern Italy participated. They completed a questionnaire on media exposure and body dissatisfaction, the Eating Disorder Inventory-2, the Body Uneasiness Test, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory – Form Y. Results: The main factors contributing to females’ eating-disordered behaviors were their own desires to be similar to TV characters, the amount of reality and entertainment TV they watched, and the discrepancy between their perceptions of their bodies and those of TV characters. Friends’ desire to be similar to TV characters contributed most to depression, anxiety, body uneasiness, and eating disorders for both males and females. Conclusion: Our data confirm that extensive watching of reality and entertainment TV correlates with eating-disordered behavior among females. Moreover, the well-known negative effects of the media on adolescents’ eating-disordered behaviors may also be indirectly transmitted by friends who share identification with TV characters

Nutritional Consequences of Food Insecurity in a Rural New York State County

This study of women with children in a rural county of upstate New York examined the relationships of food insecurity and income with two nutritional consequences (adiposity and fruit and vegetables consumption), and assessed whether disordered eating patterns is a mediator for the effects of food insecurity and income on these nutritional consequences. Each of 193 respondents was interviewed twice in her home. Data were collected on household food stores, socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, methods of obtaining food, food program participation, household expenditures, food intake, the Radimer/Cornell hunger and food insecurity items, height, weight, frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption, and disordered eating patterns. Regression analysis was used to analyze the relationships of body mass index and an obesity classification with height, income, education, single parenthood, employment, food insecurity, disordered eating, and frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption. Regression analysis was also used to examine the relationships of disordered eating and frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption with the other variables. Lower income and unemployment were related to higher adiposity. The effects of income on adiposity were not mediated through disordered eating patterns or through fruit and vegetable consumption. Food insecurity was related to adiposity, and part of this effect of food insecurity was mediated through disordered eating. This mediating effect of disordered eating partially explained why those experiencing the least severe food insecurity were more likely to be overweight than those who were food secure, but those experiencing the most severe food insecurity were less likely to be overweight than those who were food secure. Food insecurity was related to lower fruit and vegetable consumption, but this did not translate into effects on adiposity.

Body Image and Disordered Eating Among UAF Female Athletes and Non-Athletes

•Disordered eating and poor body image is a problem in our society for many women •Most eating disorder patients are young females, and female athletes may be particularly at risk •Disordered eating is often associated with perfectionism, poor mental health, and other health-risk behaviors •This research explored associations between eating behavior, body image, perfectionism, depression, binge drinking, and alcohol consequences in a sample of female athletes and non-athletes •Analyses were conducted to determine differences in these variables between athletes and non-athletes, and between sports in the subsample of athlete

Beyond Scope of Practice: Inferring High School Tennis Coaches' Behavior from their Nutrition and Eating Disorder Knowledge

The primary purpose of this study was to assess high school tennis coaches’ knowledge of macronutrients and disordered eating (e.g., etiology). Other purposes included identifying confidence in knowledge and any differences between the participating coaches’ knowledge and demographic variables. To address these purposes, the 27-question Nutrition and Eating Disorders in Tennis (“NET”) Survey was created. The study design involved a one-time voluntary assessment of the Indiana coaches’ demographic variables, knowledge, sources of knowledge, and level of confidence (e.g., Not At All or Very Confident). Overall, the results revealed that the coaches lacked knowledge. The average score was 70.6%, which was below the criterion for adequate knowledge. Furthermore, the coaches lacked adequate knowledge in three of the five knowledge domains: Treatment and Prevention of Disordered Eating (63.6% ± 22.9%), Disordered Eating Signs and Symptoms (60.0% ± 21.7%), and Macronutrients (57.0% ± 22.4%). There were no significant differences between coaches’ education level, gender, or type and knowledge. However, there was in experience; the more years coached, the lower the scores. Finally, there was a trend of overconfidence in answers

Disordered Eating in Collegiate Athletes: Prevalence and Relationships with Body Composition

Performance pressures and emphasis on body weight and shape put collegiate athletes at risk for disordered eating. If not identified early, disordered eating behaviors could develop into a clinical eating disorder. While such behaviors are a known problem, prevalence rates are not well established in collegiate athletes. Disordered eating may also relate to physiological changes in athletes, such as body composition and performance, although this relationship is not well understood. The aims of this research were to 1) determine the prevalence of disordered eating risk in NCAA Division I student-athletes and 2) determine if such behaviors are related to baseline and changes in body composition over a competitive season. Athletes (n=58) competing in eight different sports (football, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s basketball, gymnastics, men’s and women’s track and field, and women’s diving), from an urban university, completed the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) questionnaire and two dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) body composition scans, one at preseason and another at postseason. While no risk for disordered eating was found in this sample, visceral adipose tissue (VAT) was positively correlated with EAT-26 scores (r=0.661, p=0.038) among female gymnasts. Reasons for these findings are unclear; however, it is thought that the ethnic diversity of the sample played a role in the absence of disordered eating risk in this study. Further research is needed to better understand if ethnicity plays a role in disordered eating risk

The effects of stimulants on eating patterns in children and adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Objectives. This study aims to evaluate the effects of methylphenidate (MPH) on eating patterns and body mass index (BMI) in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The secondary aim of this study is the comparison between weight and eating behavior of children with ADHD undergoing an MPH treatment, and of children without ADHD. Methods. One hundred fourty three children and adolescents who diagnosed with ADHD were enrolled, and the effects of MPH on the eating patterns and BMI were evaluated. All participants completed a number of tests to analyze eating patterns and clinical psychopathological profiles. Results. Children and adolescents with ADHD had significantly higher scores on the EDE-Q- eating concern, EDE-Q- shape concern, and all CPRS-RSF subscales than individuals without ADHD (p \u3c .05). MPH treatment was associated with a notional reduction in height-sds and weight-sds. The results of the correlation analysis which assessed the possible contribution of the different treatment-related factors revealed no significant correlations between MPH mean dose [mg/(kg/d)], the duration of use (months), and the core characteristics of eating disorders except the restraint subscale of EDE Q. Conclusions. Our findings add to the growing research suggesting that MPH may be associated with disordered eating behaviors. Although the literature is limited, our findings conclude that MPH may not be associated with the reduction of growth velocity and disordered eating behaviors

Direct and indirect effects of sociocultural influences on disordered eating among Malaysian male and female university students : a mediation analysis of psychological distress.

This study aimed to examine the role of psychological distress in the relationships between sociocultural influences (social pressure to be thin and weight teasing) and disordered eating. Data were collected from 584 university students (59.4% females and 40.6% males), aged 18–24 years old (M = 20.6, SD = 1.4), selected from four universities in the Klang Valley, Malaysia. Participants completed four standardized questionnaires which measured social pressure to be thin, weight-related teasing, psychological distress and disordered eating. A good fit structural equation modeling (SEM) model was developed for both sexes. For males, the SEM model revealed that sociocultural influences showed an indirect effect on disordered eating through psychological distress. For females, the model showed an indirect effect of sociocultural influences on disordered eating through psychological distress, as well as a direct effect of sociocultural influences on disordered eating. In conclusion, psychological distress mediated the relationships between sociocultural influences and disordered eating in both males and females. Our results suggest that disordered eating intervention programs on reducing psychological distress in university students may be beneficial

Drunkorexia: investigación empírica y análisis de las características del fenómeno en una muestra italiana de adolescentes y adultos jóvenes

Introduction: the term drunkorexia refers to the act of self-imposed utilization of extreme weight control methods to compensate for alcohol consumption typically observed among university students. Despite its diffusion, there is a lack of research investigating the presence of this new alarming trend in Italy. Aim: this study estimates the frequency of drunkorexia behaviours in a sample of Italian youth aged 14-24, explores the motivations for alcohol consumption among those presenting drunkorexia-type behaviours, and examines the relationship between drunkorexia and disordered eating. Methods: drunkorexia behaviors, eating habits and motives for alcohol use were investigated in 403 subjects (F=301, M=102) aged 14-24 through self-report questionnaires. A series of analyses, including descriptive statistics, univariate analysis of the variance and multiple regressions were run. Results: 62.5% of the sample showed drunkorexia-type behaviours. Drunkorexia was related to disordered eating, especially among females older than eighteen. Discussion and Conclusions: this the first study investigating the incidence of drunkorexia behaviors in a sample of youth living in Northern Italy. Evidence-based interventions for eating disorders and drinking problems should inspire the development of ad hoc preventive and treatment actions for drunkorexia.

Predictors of Disordered Eating in Adolescence and Young Adulthood: A Population-Based, Longitudinal Study of Females and Males in Norway

We investigated longitudinal predictors for disordered eating from early adolescence to young adulthood (12–34 years) across gender and different developmental phases among Norwegian young people. Survey data from a population-based sample were collected at four time points (T) over a 13-year time span. A population-based sample of 5,679 females and males at T1 and T2, 2,745 at T3 and 2,718 at T4 were included in analyses, and linear regression and random intercept models were applied. In adolescence, initial disordered eating and parental overprotectiveness were more strongly related to disordered eating among females, whereas loneliness was a stronger predictor for adolescent males. Initial disordered eating during early adolescence predicted later disordered eating more strongly in late- than mid-adolescence. In young adulthood, no significant gender-specific risk factors were found. The findings provide support for both shared and specific risk factors for the developmental psychopathology of disordered eating.Norges forskningsråd 19622