Psychological distress and its association with intake of sugar-sweetened beverages, discretionary foods, and alcohol, in women during COVID-19, in Australia

Do Mindful Eating and Intuitive Eating Affect Beverage Preferences? A Cross-Sectional Survey

Intuitive eating involves following body signals to guide eating decisions and avoiding restrictive diets. Mindful eating is paying full attention to sensory experiences and fostering nonjudgmental awareness. We aimed to elucidate potential relationships between beverage intake and intuitive and mindful eating scores. This cross-sectional exploratory study (October 2021-December 2022) enrolled adult male and female participants who provided sociodemographic and health-related information and subsequently completed the Beverage Intake Questionnaire, the Mindful Eating Questionnaire (MEQ-30), and the Intuitive Eating Scale (IES-2). Bidirectional relationships were observed between beverage intake and intuitive and mindful eating scores. The total beverage intake of males was double compared with that of females, with the intake being mainly derived from sugar-sweetened beverages (p = 0.000). Increased total water intake was positively correlated with IES-2 and its subscale scores and was negatively correlated with MEQ-30 scores in both sexes (p < 0.05). Alcoholic beverage intake was associated with reductions in IES-2 and MEQ-30 scores, whereas unconditional permission to eat increased by 18.3% in males. In females, the consumption of milk-based beverages decreased the IES-2 scores. Understanding the complex relationships between beverage intake and intuitive and mindful eating may deepen our understanding of individual dietary behaviors and inform dietary interventions.

Impact of COVID-19 Restriction on Weight, Physical Activity, Diet and Psychological Distress on People with PCOS

BACKGROUND

People with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have higher weight gain and psychological distress compared to those without PCOS. While COVID-19 restrictions led to population level adverse changes in lifestyle, weight gain and psychological distress, their impact on people with PCOS is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact the 2020 COVID-19 restrictions had on weight, physical activity, diet and psychological distress for Australians with PCOS.

METHODS

Australian reproductive-aged women participated in an online survey with assessment of weight, physical activity, diet and psychological distress. Multivariable logistic and linear regression were used to examine associations between PCOS and residential location with health outcomes.

RESULTS

On adjusted analysis, those with PCOS gained more weight (2.9%; 95% CI; 0.027-3.020; p = 0.046), were less likely to meet physical activity recommendations (OR 0.50; 95% CI; 0.32-0.79; p = 0.003) and had higher sugar-sweetened beverage intake (OR 1.74; 95% CI 1.10-2.75; p = 0.019) but no differences in psychological distress compared to women without PCOS.

CONCLUSIONS

People with PCOS were more adversely affected by COVID-19 restrictions, which may worsen their clinical features and disease burden. Additional health care support may be necessary to assist people with PCOS to meet dietary and physical activity recommendations.

The correlation between lifestyle health behaviors, coping style, and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic among college students: Two rounds of a web-based study

Background

During the last months of 2019, worldwide attention has focused on a pandemic of COVID-19, and the pandemic spread rapidly, becoming a public health emergency of international concern. The Chinese government has quickly taken quarantine measures and the drastic measures incurred to curtail it, which could have harmful consequences for everyone's behavior and mental health.

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the correlation of influencing factors and mental health symptoms among Chinese college students according to two rounds of surveys during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Materials and methods

This study was divided into two stages of cross-sectional investigation. In February 2020 and May 2020, two cross-sectional surveys were conducted on college students in the above areas by means of cluster sampling. From February 4 to February 12, 2020, 14,789 college students completed the first round of online study from 16 cities and universities in 21 in China, excluding participants who completed the questionnaire, and finally included 11,787 college students. After 3 months, we also conducted a large-scale questionnaire survey based on the first study area to observe the behavioral changes and psychological symptoms of college students within 3 months. Using the convenience sampling method, a survey on the cognitive and psychological status of COVID-19 among college students was conducted in 21 universities in 16 regions in May 2020. The regions among the two surveys are divided into Wuhan (District 1), neighboring Hubei (District 2), first-tier cities, namely, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou (District 3), and other provinces (District 4).

Results

(1) In the first survey, the average age of the participants was 20.51 ± 1.88 years. One-third of the college students were male. In total, 25.9 and 17.8% of college students reported depression and anxiety symptoms, respectively. College students, who reported higher ST, lower PA, higher soda beverage and tea beverage intake, have Chinese herbal medicine and vitamin drinking, and decreased frequency of diet had higher depression and anxiety symptoms. Moreover, infection risk, perceived resistance to COVID-19, concerns about physical symptoms, family/friends directly/indirectly contacted with confirmed cases, and seeking psychological counseling had significant associations with anxiety and depression symptoms. (2) In the second round of surveys, 6803 males (41.7%) and 9502 females (58.3%) had a mean age of 20.58 ± 1.81 years. The prevalence of depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms during COVID-19 was 30.7 and 23.9%, respectively. (3) In both surveys, college students who reported having higher ST, lower PA, higher soda beverage and tea beverage intake, Chinese herbal medicine and vitamin drinking, and decreased frequency of diet also had higher depression and anxiety symptoms. Coping styles with COVID-19 partially mediate the association between some related lifestyle behaviors and anxiety and depression. The results of the conditional process model analysis support our hypothesis that lifestyle behaviors, and coping styles are both predictors of anxiety and depression symptoms, with both direct and indirect effects moderated by gender level. In logistic regression analysis, the correlation of depression and anxiety in the second rounds of the survey was higher than that in the first survey. In two surveys, there was a correlation between lifestyle health behaviors and coping style, gender and mental health.

Conclusions

Our findings demonstrated that the prevalence of anxiety and depression in the two rounds of surveys was different, and the prevalence in the second round was higher than that in the first round, as well as that in the two rounds of surveys. All survey identified that unhealthy lifestyle behaviors were positively associated with depression and anxiety symptoms. Compared with the emerged city of risk areas, other pandemic regions have a lower risk of mental health problems. The survey findings complement each other. Lifestyle health behaviors and coping style alleviated mental health symptoms. COVID-19-related social stressors were positively associated with mental health symptoms. The study also suggests that at the beginning of the pandemic, the effective management of college students' mental health problems, corresponding coping measures and maintaining a good lifestyle play a key role in the prevention and control of other cities. Understanding the college students' lifestyle behaviors during COVID-19 lockdown will help public health authorities reshape future policies on their nutritional recommendations, in preparation for future pandemics.

Association of sugar-sweetened beverage consumption with psychological symptoms among Chinese university students during the COVID-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND

Mental health of college students has become a public health issue of common concern worldwide. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, the problem has become even more acute. The aim of this study was to assess the association between sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) consumption and psychological symptoms among Chinese college students in order to promote their mental health.

METHODS

The study population was 6,120 college students aged 19-22 years from Anhui, Henan and Xinjiang, China. Basic demographic information, covariates and SSB Consumption data were collected through a self-assessment questionnaire. The "Multidimensional Sub-health Questionnaire of Adolescents" was used to assess the psychological symptoms of college students. The Chi-square test, one-way ANOVA and logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the differences and associations between SSB consumption and psychological symptoms among Chinese college students.

RESULTS

The detection rate of psychological symptoms among Chinese college students was 8.1%. The detection rate of boys students was 9.4% and that of girls students was 7.1%, and the difference was statistically significant in comparison (χ 2-value was 11.08, p < 0.001). After controlling for covariates, Model 2 analysis showed that compared to SSB consumption <2 time/week, college students with SSB consumption ≥2 time/week (OR = 2.96, 95% CI: 2.36, 3.70) had a higher risk of psychological symptoms (p < 0.001). The same trend was found for emotional symptoms, behavioral symptoms, and social adaptation difficulties dimensions.

CONCLUSION

There is an association between SSB consumption and the occurrence of psychological symptoms among Chinese college students. Future measures should be taken to reduce both SSB consumption and the incidence of psychological symptoms.