Emotional dimensions of eating behavior and quality of life in adolescents/youth

Abstract

The importance of eating behavior (EB) in quality of life is unquestionable. Hence, it will be interesting to identify the individual factors related to the emotional dimensions that influence the EB. This nonexperimental study aims to assess the relationship between eating behavior and the quality of life in adolescents and youth, namely the impact of the three eating emotional dimensions (restriction, disinhibition and hunger). Additionally, this paper discusses the socio educational intervention to promote healthy eating. This is an ex post facto study with a convenience sample of 108 Portuguese adolescents/youth with a mean age of 15.21 ± 1.42. The Portuguese version of the KINDL measuring quality of life and the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ) measuring eating behavior and a sociodemographic questionnaire were applied on the sample. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS-IBM24, with a 95% confidence level. Results in the TFEQ revealed adolescents/youth with 1.84 ± .50, 1.99 ± .54, and 2.55 ± .56, respectively in the restriction, disinhibition and hunger. Adolescents/youth with low disinhibition and hunger in TFEQ showed better quality of life than individuals with higher levels of both eating emotional dimensions (p = .007 and p = .013, respectively). Restriction dimension seems independent of the quality of life. The relationship between the emotional dimensions of EB and quality of life justifies a socio educational intervention to promote a healthy eating behaviour among adolescents/youth. This relationship may be mediated by the effects of those dimensions on results on food balance and its organic repercussions. Thus, intervention should focus on awareness of those effects. However, this mediation needs to be better investigated.