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Constant A, Fortier A, Serrand Y, Bannier E, Moirand R, Thibault R, Coquery N, Godet A, Val-Laillet D. Emotional overeating affected nine in ten female students during the COVID-19 university closure: A cross-sectional study in France. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0286439. [PMID: 37651411 PMCID: PMC10470954 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0286439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/02/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To estimate the proportion of female university students reporting overeating (EO) in response to emotions during the COVID-19 university closures, and to investigate social and psychological factors associated with this response to stress. DESIGN Online survey gathered sociodemographic data, alcohol/drugs use disorders, boredom proneness and impulsivity using validated questionnaires, and EO using the Emotional Overeating Questionnaire (EOQ) assessing eating in response to six emotions (anxiety, sadness, loneliness, anger, fatigue, happiness), whose structure remains to be determined. PARTICIPANTS Sample of 302 female students from Rennes University, France. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Frequencies of emotional overeating. ANALYSIS The frequency of emotional overeating was expressed for each emotion as percentages. Exploratory Factor analyses (EFA) were used to determine EOQ structure and provide an index of all EOQ items used for further analysis. Linear regression models were used to explore relationships between EO and others covariates. RESULTS Nine in ten participants reported intermittent EO in the last 28 days, mostly during 6 to 12 days, in response to Anxiety (75.5%), Sadness (64.5%), Happiness (59.9%), Loneliness (57.9%), Tiredness (51.7%), and to a lesser extent to Anger (31.1%). EFA evidenced a one-factor latent variable reflecting "Distress-Induced Overeating" positively correlated with internal boredom proneness, tobacco use, attentional impulsivity, inability to resist emotional cues, and loss of control over food intake, and negatively with age and well-being. EO was unrelated to body mass index or substance abuse. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS Nine in ten female students reported emotional overeating during the COVID-19 university closure. This response to stress was related to eating tendencies typical of young women, but also to personality/behavioral patterns such as boredom and impulsivity proneness. Better understanding of the mechanisms underlying EO in response to stress and lack of external/social stimulation would improve preventive interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aymery Constant
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
- EHESP, School of Public Health, Rennes, France
| | - Alexandra Fortier
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - Yann Serrand
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - Elise Bannier
- Inria, CRNS, Inserm, IRISA UMR 6074, Empenn U1228, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
- Radiology Department, CHU Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - Romain Moirand
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
- Unité d’Addictologie, CHU Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - Ronan Thibault
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
- Unité de Nutrition, CHU Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - Nicolas Coquery
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - Ambre Godet
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
| | - David Val-Laillet
- INRAE, INSERM, CHU Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Univ Rennes, Rennes, France
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Zhang X, Wen K, Han J, Chen H. The Neural Processes in Food Decision-making and their Effect on Daily Diet Management in Successful and Unsuccessful Restrained Eaters. Neuroscience 2023; 517:1-17. [PMID: 36764599 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.01.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2022] [Revised: 01/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
Abstract
This study aimed to explore the neural mechanisms underlying food decision making in unsuccessful restrained eaters (US-REs) and successful restrained eaters (S-REs). During a functional magnetic resonance imaging scan, participants were required to choose between pairs of high- and low-calorie foods under the following conditions: the congruent condition (choose between high- and low-calorie foods with the same level of tastiness) and incongruent condition (choose between high-calorie foods tastier than the corresponding low-calorie foods). Subsequently, the participants' diets were monitored for one week. The behavioral results showed that US-REs (n = 28) chose more high-calorie foods than S-REs (n = 26); in contrast, S-REs spent more time in choosing for the incongruent than the congruent condition. The fMRI results found that US-REs exhibited more activity in reward regions (caudate and thalamus) than S-REs in the congruent condition. In the incongruent condition, S-REs showed stronger functional connectivity between the conflict-monitoring region (anterior cingulate cortex) and inhibitory-control regions (inferior frontal gyrus [IFG] and medial frontal gyrus) than US-REs. In both the conditions, increased activation of the insula, putamen, middle frontal gyrus, and IFG could predict increased food intake among US-REs in the following week. Furthermore, in both the conditions, increased IFG activation could predict decreased food cravings among S-REs during the following week. Our results suggest that US-REs have a strong reward response to food. Compared to US-REs, S-REs are more guided more by the goal of weight control, and exhibit strong functional connections between the conflict-monitoring and inhibitory-control regions. Therefore, eating enjoyment and weight-control goals influence restrained eating in daily life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuemeng Zhang
- School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China; Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Science, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Ke Wen
- Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Science, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Jinfeng Han
- School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Hong Chen
- School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.
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Penzavecchia C, Todisco P, Muzzioli L, Poli A, Marangoni F, Poggiogalle E, Giusti AM, Lenzi A, Pinto A, Donini LM. The influence of front-of-pack nutritional labels on eating and purchasing behaviors: a narrative review of the literature. Eat Weight Disord 2022; 27:3037-3051. [PMID: 36369593 PMCID: PMC9803757 DOI: 10.1007/s40519-022-01507-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 10/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Front-of-Pack Nutritional Labels are considered a useful tool to help consumers orient themselves in their food choices and direct their behavior toward a healthier diet. FOPNL development and use are part of a framework that includes cognitive, biological, hedonic and cultural aspects, able to affect consumers' eating and purchasing behavior. AIM Given the complexity of the matter, the aim of this narrative review is to analyze the combination of different factors that drive food choices and eating behaviors and to highlight some aspects that are not fully studied. METHODS The authors conducted the research using a top-down approach at first, followed by a bottom-up approach; starting with general considerations about the purchasing process, gradually narrowing the discussion to a specific sub-population, and finally extending the discussion back to more general reasonings about the direction to adopt in future, or at least to evaluate, for effective communication. RESULTS Biases and attitudes toward food products were found to regularly interfere with buying behavior patterns, making it impossible to standardize an average consumer. This reflects in current research, increasing the complexity of the topic. All determinants influencing food choices are often assessed individually rather than in a synergistic and multidimensional context, while the purchasing scenario is characterized by multiple stimuli to which the consumer is subjected. FOPNLs' impact on perceived healthiness has been studied in different conditions, but some population subgroups have not been sufficiently represented. In particular, the effect of FOPNLs on consumers suffering from eating disorders is understudied and needs further attention. Furthermore, some approaches can be compared to "negative nutrition" or "loss-framed communication", putting nutrients out of context, emphasizing losses more than gains and risking promoting negative feelings in consumers. CONCLUSION Due to the heterogeneity of studies, evidence on what works best in driving people to adopt lasting lifestyle changes is still mixed. Science communicators and policymakers should consider the possibility that a multi-component approach incorporating nutrition information and education may be a key strategy to promote consumers' self-consciousness and to support them in their cognitive efforts toward a healthy and sustainable diet. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Level V, narrative review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Penzavecchia
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Todisco
- Eating Disorders Unit, Casa di Cura "Villa Margherita", Arcugnano, Vicenza, Italy
| | - Luca Muzzioli
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Poli
- NFI-Nutrition Foundation of Italy, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Eleonora Poggiogalle
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Anna Maria Giusti
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Lenzi
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessandro Pinto
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Maria Donini
- Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology Section, Food Science and Human Nutrition Research Unit, Experimental Medicine Department, Sapienza University, Ple. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185, Rome, Italy.
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