Night eating syndrome subtypes: differences in binge eating and food addiction symptoms

PURPOSE

The purpose of the current study was to examine differences in binge eating and food addiction symptoms between Night Eating Syndrome (NES) latent subtypes: evening hyperphagia with nocturnal ingestions (EHNI), evening hyperphagia-only (EHO), and nocturnal ingestions-only (NIO). It was hypothesized that the EHNI group would report more binge eating behaviors and more food addiction symptoms than both the EHO and NIO groups. Further, it was hypothesized that the EHO and NIO groups would differ with the EHO group reporting more binge eating behaviors and the NIO group reporting more food addiction symptoms.

METHODS

Participants completed measures online relating to night eating, binge eating, and food addiction. Average age of the final sample was 34.3 (SD = 10.5) and 62.0% were men. Responses to the Night Eating Questionnaire (NEQ; Allison et al., 2008) were used to create an EHNI group (n = 65), an EHO group (n = 32), and a NIO group (n = 69). ANOVAs were conducted to examine between-group differences on disordered eating symptoms.

RESULTS

Participants in the EHNI group reported more severe binge eating and food addiction symptoms than those in the EHO and NIO groups. However, there were no significant differences in binge eating or food addiction between the EHO and NIO groups.

CONCLUSION

Individuals who meet both NES core criteria (evening hyperphagia and nocturnal ingestions) are likely at a higher risk for experiencing other, more severe disordered eating pathologies. Implications concerning assessment and future research on NES typology are discussed.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

Sleep/waketime preference and delayed diurnal eating rhythms are associated through light exposure timing and modified by sleep efficiency

Delayed eating rhythms, relative to the sleep/wake period, commonly manifest as a lack of hunger in the morning (morning anorexia) and elevated hunger in the late evening (evening hyperphagia). These intake patterns are associated with adverse mental and physical health outcomes. We aimed to evaluate whether the timing of light exposure, an important environmental signal for circadian synchronization, explains the link between sleep/waketime preferences and delayed diurnal appetite. We also aimed to test whether disruptions in sleep quality, reflecting suboptimal circadian synchronization, identify individuals for whom sleep/waketime preference is associated with delayed diurnal appetite. Participants (N = 150) completed a measure of their sleep/waketime preferences and wore a device to capture their sleep efficiency and naturalistic light exposure for 48 consecutive hours. The timing of light exposure mediated the link between sleep/waketime preferences and evening hyperphagia, but not morning anorexia, such that a later peak in light exposure mitigated some of the risk for evening hyperphagia that was associated with later sleep/waketime preferences. Sleep efficiency moderated the association between sleep/waketime preference and morning anorexia, but not evening hyperphagia. Earlier sleep/waketime preference was associated with less morning anorexia among individuals with high sleep efficiency, but morning anorexia was consistently elevated among individuals with poor sleep efficiency. These results on the relation between sleep/waketime preference and two aspects of delayed diurnal appetite suggest that morning anorexia depends on sleep efficiency and evening hyperphagia may be influenced by the timing of daily light exposure. Future research should assess over longer periods, covering weekdays and weekends, and incorporate momentary reports of meals/snacks and appetite.

Proportion of night eating syndrome in Arab population of Oman

OBJECTIVE

Globally obesity has reached epidemic proportions with alarming rates in the Arabian Gulf countries. The impact of behavioral eating habits and in particular night eating syndrome (NES) have not been emphasized in the region. This study assessed the proportion of NES in an Omani Arab adult population sample.

METHOD

A night eating syndrome questionnaire (NEQ) was distributed to Omani adults above the age of 20.

RESULTS

Out of the 454 respondents, 26.4 % endorsed evening hyperphagia while nocturnal ingestion was present in 4.7 % of the respondents. In addition, 1.5 % of the respondents met the NES criteria.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

The proportion of NES in Omani adult population is similar to the reported rates in general world populations. In conclusion, night eating syndrome is present in the Omani Arab adults and should be taken into account in national management for increased obesity trends in the region.

Evening hyperphagia and food motivation: a preliminary study of neural mechanisms

Evening hyperphagia (EH; consumption of ≥25% of total daily calories after the evening meal) is a circadian delay in the pattern of daily food intake and is a core criterion of night eating syndrome (Allison et al., 2010). This preliminary study examined the brain response to food cues using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in seven obese adults with EH compared to seven obese adults without EH. When contrasting food to non-food and blurry baseline images pre-meal, groups differed in brain activation in the inferior frontal gyrus, precentral gyrus, cingulate gyrus, superior temporal gyrus and cerebellum. At post meal, groups differed in brain activation in the fusiform gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobule and the cerebellum. Significant interactions between time (pre-meal, post-meal) and group (EH, control) when contrasting food to non-food images were also noted in the inferior frontal gyrus and the superior temporal gyrus. Further research is necessary to replicate these findings and determine if they have a mechanistic role in the development of circadian delayed eating behavior in obese adults with EH.