Role of food choice motives in the socio-economic disparities in diet diversity and obesity outcomes in Kenya.

BACKGROUND: The increased prevalence of overweight and obesity, along with high diet diversity, is observed among higher socio-economic groups in Sub-Saharan Africa. One contributing factor to these observed variations is food choice motives. However, the role of these motives in explaining the observed differences has not been thoroughly explored in this context. OBJECTIVE: This study investigates whether there are significant differences in food choice motives among socio-economic groups and whether these variations can partly explain the socio-economic disparities in diet diversity and overweight and obesity outcomes. METHODS: This study utilizes cross-sectional data from four counties in Kenya: Kiambu, Murang'a, Uasin Gishu, and Nakuru. The survey employed a three-stage cluster sample design to gather data using structured questionnaires on food choice motives, diet diversity, and anthropometrics from 381 adults in 2022. The mediating effects of 8 food choice motives (health, mood, convenience, sensory appeal, natural content, price, weight control, and familiarity) were analyzed using the Karlson-Holm-Breen method. RESULTS: The results show that individuals with higher household incomes place greater importance on health, mood, sensory, and weight concerns. The probability of an overweight and obesity outcome increases by 19% for a standard deviation change in the asset score, and by 8% for a standard deviation change in the years of schooling. Sensory motives significantly mediated these relationships. Sensory motives explained 29% of the income-BMI association and 30% of the education-BMI relationship. Higher education was also associated with increased diet diversity (ß = 0.36, P < 0.001) mediated by higher health and sensory concerns. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest significant differences in food choice motives among socio-economic groups, which contribute to outcomes such as overweight and obesity. Therefore, educational and other policies aimed at reducing obesity should also address food choice motives, while considering the disparities among socio-economic segments within populations.

Experiences of living with overweight/obesity and early type 2 diabetes in Singapore-a qualitative interview study.

OBJECTIVES: To understand the lived experience of adults with overweight/obesity and early type 2 diabetes in a modern urban environment, and the interrelations among the various aspects of these experiences and participants' attitudes to weight management. DESIGN: Qualitative inductive approach to analysing data thematically from semistructured interviews and interpreted from a socioecological perspective. SETTING: Primary care clinics located in northern and central Singapore. PARTICIPANTS: 21 patients between 29 and 59 years old who are living with overweight/obese (Body Mass Index of 25.3-44.0kg/m2) and type 2 diabetes for 6 years or less. RESULTS: The main themes - everyday life, people around me and within me - pointed to a combination of barriers to weight and health management for participants. These included environmental factors such as easy physical and digital access to unhealthy food, and high-stress work environments; social factors such as ambiguous family support and dietary practices of peers; and individual factors such as challenges with self-regulation, prioritising work, dealing with co-existing medical conditions and the emotional significance of food. While lack of motivation and cultural dietary practices are hard to change, a problem-solving attitude, and presence of role models, may enable behaviour change. CONCLUSION: An exploration of the lifeworld of patients with overweight/obese and early type 2 diabetes revealed that work demands, dietary practices in the workplace and at home, and the easy availability of calorie-dense foods afforded by a technology-infused environment hindered the individual's efforts at maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle. Policy and initiatives promoting work-life balance as well as individualised interventions can support participants' stress management, and problem-solving capability for behaviour change. These barriers stemmed from the various domains of the environmental, interpersonal and intrapersonal but were interrelated. They underscored the need for an integrated approach to weight and diabetes management.

Testing general sociocultural and coach-related appearance pressures as the factors associated with disordered eating in competitive female athletes participating in various sports.

The aim of the present study was to test the sociocultural Petrie and Greenleaf's (2007) model of disordered eating (DE) in competitive female athletes. Specifically, we tested a model of general sociocultural and coach-related pressures towards body weight and appearance of female athletes as the factors associated with athletes' DE through the mediators such as internalization of appearance ideals and overweight preoccupation. 515 athletes participated in this study. The mean age of the sample was 19.0 ± 5.9 years. Athletes were provided with study measures on general sociocultural and coach-related appearance and body weight pressures, internalization of appearance ideals, overweight preoccupation and DE. Path analyses showed that general sociocultural pressures were associated with DE directly and through internalization of appearance ideals and overweight preoccupation. Pressures from coaches were associated with DE through overweight preoccupation and through the internalization of appearance ideals and overweight preoccupation. The models were invariant across body weight sensitivity in sports and age groups. These results inform DE prevention for female athletes. It is important to increase resistance to sociocultural pressures and pressures from coaches in DE prevention programmes for female competitive athletes of all ages and participating in sports irrespective of sports group (weight-sensitive or less weight-sensitive).

Mental Health and Body Image and the Reduction of Excess Body Weight in Woman (Polish Sample).

In recent years, excessive body weight has become one of the most serious psychological, biological and social problems. According to forecasts by the World Health Organization, obesity and overweight will continue to increase among both adults and children in the coming years. Poland ranks sixth in Europe in this respect. In 2021, almost 58% of Poles had above-average body weight (overweight or obesity). In Poland, 29% of women are overweight, and 21% of women are obese. Body dissatisfaction, depression, and anxiety disorder are indicated as consequences of high BMI in women. Reducing excess body weight improves psychosocial functioning and changes body assessment. The most lasting effects of weight reduction are achieved by a properly selected diet combined with increased physical activity. This results in a change in lifestyle, changes in the levels of metabolic indicators, and changes in one's body image and mental health. Objective: Our objective was to assess changes in body image and mental health among Polish women and their dependence on the weight reduction method used (type of diet and physical activity). Comparative studies involving 122 women were conducted. These women were selected from 1000 volunteers based on BMI criteria. The effects of diet therapy were compared with the effects of diet therapy combined with physical activity. Research tools: The GHQ-12 scale was used to measure mental health, and the Body Esteem Scale was used to measure body image. The study lasted four years. The results showed changes in body image, general mental health index, and BMI in women who dieted and in those who dieted and exercised. In women using a diet combined with physical activity, greater positive changes in mental condition and stronger positive changes in body image, namely in the assessment of satisfaction with sexual attractiveness, physical condition, and body weight control, were observed compared to women using diet therapy alone.

Parent Intention to Participate in an Online Intervention to Enhance Health Behavior Change Among Youth Treated with Psychotropic Medication Who are Overweight or Obese: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior.

Youth with mental health disorders (MHD), particularly those who take psychotropic medications, are at increased risk of being overweight or obese (OW/OB) when compared to typical youth. Parents are important resources for interventions addressing OW/OB. However, parents of youth with MHD may face challenges that require interventions designed to address their needs. Prior to investing research funding in the development of interventions for this group, research is needed to understand factors associated with parents' decisions to enroll in these programs. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) provided a framework for examining parents' salient beliefs, direct attitudes, and intention to enroll in a hypothetical online healthy lifestyle intervention for their youth (ages 11-17) with OW/OB and treated with psychotropic medication. Parents who were enrolled in the study (n = 84) completed demographic questionnaires and a TPB questionnaire which was constructed for this study. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the direct attitude (i.e., attitude toward the behavior, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control) questions generally supported the three-factor model (i.e., RMSEA = .07, 90% CI .03-.11, p = .18; CFI = .96, SRMR = .06). Results from a multiple regression analysis demonstrated that direct attitudes predicted parent intention to participate in an online healthy lifestyle intervention for this sample of youth accounting for 84% of variance. In this preliminary study, the TPB appears to be a promising framework for understanding direct attitudes associated with parent intentions toward intervention participation in this population of youth. Interventions for parents of youth with OW/OB who are prescribed psychotropic medication should consider addressing these direct attitudes to improve intention.

Contingency management for smoking cessation for individuals with overweight or obesity: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Interventions for quitting smoking and weight control among individuals with excess weight are scarce. Our study evaluated the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) plus contingency management (CM) in this population, and examined whether CM for smoking cessation improved CBT treatment outcomes at end of treatment (EOT) and at 1-, 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups (FU). METHODS: In an 8-week randomized clinical trial, 120 adults who smoke with overweight or obesity (54.16% females; MBMI = 31.75 ± 4.31) were randomly assigned to CBT for both quitting smoking and weight control (n = 60) or the same treatment plus CM for smoking cessation (n = 60). Outcome variables were compared (i.e., treatment completion, smoking abstinence, weight change and secondary outcomes). RESULTS: At EOT, the CBT + CM group achieved 78.33% 7-day point-prevalence abstinence rates compared to 61.67% in the CBT group (p = .073), and rates declined over time (12-month FU: 18% vs 12%). Participants who attained abstinence weighed more compared to baseline at EOT (Mkg = 1.07; SD = 1.88) and over time (12-month FU: Mkg = 4.19; SD = 4.31). No differences were found between the two groups in outcome variables. CONCLUSIONS: Both interventions were effective in promoting abstinence and reducing tobacco use over time. Combining CBT with CM for smoking cessation did not improve treatment outcomes in individuals with overweight or obesity compared to CBT only. Future studies should evaluate whether implementing CM for weight maintenance helps control post-cessation weight gain in this population.

Depression, anxiety, and health-related quality of life in normal weight, overweight and obese individuals with diabetes: a representative study in Germany.

OBJECTIVE: Diabetes in the course of lifetime is related to a higher risk for mental disorders. The present study addresses the comparison of individuals with diabetes and non-diabetic individuals in depressive symptoms, generalized anxiety symptoms, and health-related quality of life. Furthermore, mediator effect of BMI and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) on the association between diabetes, depression, and generalized anxiety was analyzed. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, the three questionnaires PHQ-9, GAD-7, EQ-5D-5L were measured in a representative sample of the German population (N = 2386). In addition, the presence of diabetes and BMI were assessed via self-report. RESULTS: There were higher values in depressive and anxiety symptoms as well as lower score in HRQOL in individuals with diabetes compared to non-diabetic individuals. Obese individuals with diabetes showed the highest rates in depressive symptoms and generalized anxiety as well as lowest score in HRQOL. With regard to the mediator analyses, association between diabetes, depressive symptoms, and anxiety symptoms is partially mediated by the BMI and fully mediated by the HRQOL. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, individuals with diabetes have an increased risk in the development of depressive and anxiety symptoms as well as lower health-related quality of life. Future research and strategies in the public health policies among individuals with diabetes should take into account that the association between diabetes, depression, and anxiety is mediated by BMI and HRQOL.

Effect of physical activity on anxiety, depression and obesity index in children and adolescents with obesity: A meta-analysis.

FOR FULL-LENGTH ARTICLES: This study systematically identified the effects of physical activity (PA) on depression, anxiety and weight-related outcomes among children and adolescents with overweight/obesity. EMBASE, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and PubMed were searched from January 1, 2000 to August 1, 2022 for peer-reviewed papers. Meta-analyses were conducted to ascertain the effect of physical activity on symptoms of anxiety, depression and weight-related outcomes in overweight/obese children and adolescents. Twenty-five studies representing 2188 participants, with median age 12.08 years old (8.3 to 18.44 years) were included. Depressive and anxiety symptoms, BMI, BMI z-scores, weight, waist circumference and height were evaluated. After incorporating the effects of PA interventions on children and adolescents with overweight/obesity, PA could improve depressive and anxiety symptoms, but not obesity indexes except waist circumference. While, PA combined with other interventions have a significant effect both on anxiety symptoms and BMI compared to pure PA intervention. In terms of intervention duration, we observed that durations falling within the range of 8 to 24 weeks exhibited the most positive effects on reducing depressive symptoms. FOR SHORT COMMUNICATIONS: We included 25 articles on the effects of physical activity on psychological states such as depression and anxiety, weight, BMI and other weight-related indicators in children and adolescents with overweight/obesity. We attempted to determine the most appropriate type of physical activity intervention for children and adolescents with overweight/obesity, as well as the most appropriate population characteristics and duration by combining the outcome data from each article. This has a great enlightening effect for health workers to carry out corresponding strategies in the future.

Psychological and behavioral responses to daily weight gain during behavioral weight loss treatment.

Self-weighing is consistently associated with more effective weight control. However, patterns show that participants disengage from their weight control behaviors following weight gain. Women with BMIs in the overweight/obese range (N = 50) enrolled in a long-term behavioral weight loss program completed ecological momentary assessment (EMA) surveys immediately after their daily weigh-ins. Nightly EMA surveys and self-monitoring data through Fitbit measured their weight control behavior that day. On days when participants gained weight (vs. lost or maintained), they reported more negative mood, more guilt/shame, and lower confidence in weight control. Motivation following daily weight gain depended on participants' overall satisfaction with their weight loss so far: more satisfied participants had marginally higher, but less satisfied participants had marginally lower motivation in response to daily weight gain. Greater guilt/shame and lower motivation after the weigh-in predicted less effective weight control behavior that day (e.g., lower likelihood of calorie tracking, fewer minutes of physical activity). Results demonstrate that even small weight gain is distressing and demoralizing for women in BWL programs, which can lead to goal disengagement. These findings have implications for future BWL interventions, including the potential utility of just-in-time adaptive interventions to promote more adaptive responses in the moments after weigh-ins.

Role of Eating Behavior and Stress in Maintenance of Dietary Changes During the PREVIEW Intervention.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether eating behavior and perceived stress predict the maintenance of self-reported dietary change and adherence to dietary instructions during an intervention. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of the behavior maintenance stage (6-36 months) of the 3-year PREVIEW intervention (PREVention of diabetes through lifestyle Intervention and population studies in Europe and around the World). PARTICIPANTS: Adults (n = 1,311) with overweight and prediabetes at preintervention baseline. VARIABLES MEASURED: Eating behavior (Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire), stress (Perceived Stress Scale), and dietary intake (4-day food records on 4 occasions) were reported. ANALYSIS: Associations between predictors and dietary outcomes were examined with linear mixed-effects models for repeated measurements. RESULTS: Eating behaviors and stress at 6 months did not predict the subsequent change in dietary outcomes, but higher cognitive restraint predicted lower energy intake, and both higher disinhibition and hunger predicted higher energy intake during the following behavior maintenance stage. In addition, higher disinhibition predicted higher saturated fat intake and lower fiber intake, and higher hunger predicted lower fiber intake. Stress was not associated with energy intake or dietary quality. Eating behaviors and stress were not consistently associated with adherence to dietary instructions. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Higher cognitive restraint predicted lower energy intake (food quantity), but disinhibition and hunger were also associated with dietary quality.

Temporal associations of BMI and glucose parameters with depressive symptoms among US adults.

As the prevalence of obesity, diabetes, and depression increases, it is important to examine how their associations are changing overtime. We investigated the temporal trends in the association between depressive symptoms, body mass index (BMI) and glucose profile parameters using data from 2005 to 2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire. A total of 32,653 participants were included. Risk of depressive symptoms increased with higher BMI (aOR = 1.586, 95 % CI [1.364, 1.843]), insulin (aOR = 1.327, 95 % CI [1.159, 1.519]), HbA1c (aOR = 1.330, 95 % CI [1.116, 1.585]), or fasting glucose (aOR = 1.565, 95 % CI [1.247, 1.964]) levels compared to those with low levels. Sex differences were found, as overweight males had lower odds of depressive symptoms compared to healthy males, while overweight and obese females had higher odds compared to healthy females. High BMI and glucose parameters were consistently associated with higher depressive symptoms prevalence over time. Temporal variations were observed in the depressive symptoms-BMI and depressive symptoms-HbA1c associations, particularly at the 2007-2008 cycle. This study provides analytic insights into population level trends concerning physical and mental health problems.

Effect of High-Intensity Interval, Moderate-Intensity Continuous, and Self-Selected Intensity Training on Health and Affective Responses.

Purpose: To compare the effects of 12-week high-intensity interval (HIIT), moderate-intensity continuous (MICT), and self-selected intensity training (SSIT) on health outcomes and affective responses. Methods: Seventy-three overweight/obese inactive adults (62% woman; age, 31.4 ± 7.2 years; height, 1.66 ± 0.09 cm; Body mass index, 28.9 ± 2.7 kg.m-2) who were randomized into HIIT (n = 23), MICT (n = 24) and SSIT (n = 26) groups. The training was conducted three times per week in an outdoor environment, with 4 weeks under direct supervision and 8 weeks with semi-supervision. Cardiorespiratory fitness, body composition, and metabolic profile were evaluated at baseline and at the end of the 4th and 12th weeks. Core affect was measured during all training sessions. Results: Peak oxygen uptake improved in all groups after 4 and 12 weeks compared with baseline. Only the SSIT had reductions in body fat throughout the intervention. No improvements were observed in the metabolic profile across all groups. SSIT was perceived as more pleasurable than HIIT; however, there were no differences in affective responses between SSIT and MICT. Affective responses in-task (e.g. negative and positive peak, rate of change and affect at the end of the exercise session) predicted the HIIT and SSIT exercises attendance rate. Conclusion: Regardless of the exercise training protocol, overweight/obese inactive adults improved health outcomes, which suggests the prescribing HIIT, MICT, and SSIT in outdoor environments. SSIT should be considered in order to optimize the pleasure during training sessions. Affective response more positive in-task of the HIIT and SSIT is associated with greater attendance rate in these exercise protocols.

Mental Health During Early Adolescence and Later Cardiometabolic Risk: A Prospective Study of US Latinx Youth.

PURPOSE: Rising rates of cardiometabolic risk and mental health problems are serious public health concerns for US adolescents, particularly those of Latinx origin. This research examines how Latinx youth's internalizing symptoms during early adolescence are related to sleep problems, overweight/obesity, sedentary behavior, physical activity, healthy diet, and hypertension or diabetes risk during middle and late adolescence. METHODS: Participants included 547 adolescents listed as "Hispanic" on 2017-18 middle school enrollment lists in a suburban Atlanta, GA school district. Survey data collected at baseline (2018) and four years later (2022) were analyzed using Structural Equation Model. Path estimates from baseline internalizing symptoms to later health behaviors and physical health outcomes adjusted for demographics, the follow-up measure of internalizing symptoms, and correlations among outcome variables. Missing data were handled using Full Information Maximum Likelihood. RESULTS: At baseline, the 244 (44.6%) male and 303 (55.4%) female participants had a mean (standard deviation) age in years of 13.31 (0.97). Early adolescent internalizing symptoms were associated positively with later sleep problems (ß = 0.36 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.24-0.48]), overweight/obesity (adjusted odds ratio, 2.57; 95% CI, 1.29-5.15), sedentary behavior (ß = 0.19 [95% CI, 0.09-0.30]), and internalizing symptoms (ß = 0.48 [95% CI, 0.39-0.56]) and inversely with later physical activity (ß = -0.16 [95% CI, -0.27 to -0.05]) and a healthy diet (ß = -0.21 [95% CI, -0.32 to -0.09]). DISCUSSION: Latinx youth's internalizing symptoms during early adolescence not only track into later adolescence, but they also relate to health behaviors and outcomes underlying cardiometabolic risk during middle and late adolescence.

State-level working memory and dysregulated eating in children and adolescents: An exploratory ecological momentary assessment study.

BACKGROUND: Children with loss of control (LOC) eating and overweight/obesity have relative deficiencies in trait-level working memory (WM), which may limit adaptive responding to intra- and extra-personal cues related to eating. Understanding of how WM performance relates to eating behavior in real-time is currently limited. METHODS: We studied 32 youth (ages 10-17 years) with LOC eating and overweight/obesity (LOC-OW; n = 9), overweight/obesity only (OW; n = 16), and non-overweight status (NW; n = 7). Youth completed spatial and numerical WM tasks requiring varying degrees of cognitive effort and reported on their eating behavior daily for 14 days via smartphone-based ecological momentary assessment. Linear mixed effects models estimated group-level differences in WM performance, as well as associations between contemporaneously completed measures of WM and dysregulated eating. RESULTS: LOC-OW were less accurate on numerical WM tasks compared to OW and NW (ps < .01); groups did not differ on spatial task accuracy (p = .41). Adjusting for between-subject effects (reflecting differences between individuals in their mean WM performance and its association with eating behavior), within-subject effects (reflecting variations in moment-to-moment associations) revealed that more accurate responding on the less demanding numerical WM task, compared to one's own average, was associated with greater overeating severity across the full sample (p = .013). There were no associations between WM performance and LOC eating severity (ps > .05). CONCLUSIONS: Youth with LOC eating and overweight/obesity demonstrated difficulties mentally retaining and manipulating numerical information in daily life, replicating prior laboratory-based research. Overeating may be related to improved WM, regardless of LOC status, but temporality and causality should be further explored. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Our findings suggest that youth with loss of control eating and overweight/obesity may experience difficulties mentally retaining and manipulating numerical information in daily life relative to their peers with overweight/obesity and normal-weight status, which may contribute to the maintenance of dysregulated eating and/or elevated body weight. However, it is unclear whether these individual differences are related to eating behavior on a moment-to-moment basis.

Association between physical activity and self-regulation in early childhood: A systematic review.

Physical activity and self-regulation are important predictors of pediatric overweight and obesity. Young children (0-5 years) with lower physical activity levels and poorer self-regulation skills are at greater risk for overweight. Despite growing evidence that the two constructs are interrelated, their association remains unclear in young children. This review systematically summarized associations between physical activity and self-regulation in early childhood and explored the directionality of associations. Searches were run in six electronic databases. Forty-seven papers met inclusion criteria. Only three studies investigated all three domains of self-regulation (behavioral, cognitive, and emotional). Overall, findings were inconclusive; studies reported weak to moderate positive associations (n = 17), inverse associations (n = 5), mixed associations (n = 15), null association (n = 2), and negative (n = 1) between physical activity and self-regulation. Compared with the emotional and cognitive domains, physical activity was most consistently positively associated with behavioral self-regulation. Only one study assessed bidirectional associations, reporting a positive association. The three studies that included global self-regulation showed contradicting findings. There is some evidence that physical activity dose and sex potentially confound these associations; however, further research is needed given the paucity of studies. This review highlights the need for more in-depth investigation of the complex association between physical activity and global self-regulation.

Correlates of physical activity enjoyment in children and adolescents for a new perspective on the treatment of overweight: A systematic literature review.

The purpose of this systematic literature review was to systematically compile the state of knowledge on correlates of physical activity enjoyment in children and adolescents to influence the perspective of future physical activity promotion approaches especially for children and adolescents affected by overweight or obesity. The electronic database search was executed in the five databases PubMed, PsychINFO, SPORTDiscus, Web of Science, and BISp-SURF, from inception to December 6, 2021. A semi-quantitative method was used for summarizing the resulted correlates. For final analysis, 85 studies comprising 48,144 children and adolescents were included. Fifty-seven variables could be coded for their relationship with physical activity enjoyment. Of these, 12 psychological variables, for example, the basic psychological needs, task orientation, or self-efficacy; six interpersonal variables, for example, peer/group acceptance, parental support, and autonomy support; and one behavioral variable, the higher self-reported physical activity, are consistent positively associated to physical activity enjoyment. A scientifically based overview could be extracted for the promotion of physical activity enjoyment in children and adolescents. There is a gap in literature focusing the perception of physical activity enjoyment in the subgroup of children and adolescents affected by overweight or obesity. Therefore, recommendations were made to enable the development of further innovative research approaches in this population.

An overlooked relationship in recovery from substance use disorders: Associations between body mass index and negative emotional states.

Recovery from substance use disorders (SUD) is multifactorial. Being overweight could negatively impact physiological and psychological health-related parameters. Using model selection, we examined associations between body mass index (BMI) and negative emotional states (NES; e.g., stress, anxiety, depression) in 54 men with SUD and under treatment in five different therapeutic recovery centers. We found that BMI was positively associated with stress (p < .001), anxiety (p < .001), and depression (p = .002). Therefore, our findings suggest that decreasing the accumulation of body fat might contribute to improving mental health in individuals with SUD during recovery.

Interoceptive abilities impairment correlates with emotional eating and taste abnormalities in children with overweight and obesity.

Weight problems in children are associated with emotional eating, which has been linked to interoceptive abilities. Previous research also shows altered olfactory and gustatory perception in children with obesity and overweight. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the connection of alterations in olfactory and gustatory perception to interoceptive abilities and emotional eating among children with obesity and overweight. 23 children with overweight and obesity and age-matched controls with normal weight (12-16 years old) underwent olfactory and gustatory testing. Interoceptive abilities were assessed, focusing on interoceptive accuracy and interoceptive sensibility. Children with overweight and obesity showed significantly higher accuracy for detection of sweet taste, but descriptively lower accuracy for all other taste qualities compared to normal weight children. We found no changes in olfactory abilities in children with overweight and obesity. Emotional eating scores were elevated for children with overweight and obesity, and interoceptive accuracy scores were significantly lower. In both groups, interoceptive accuracy was inversely correlated with emotional eating. Our results support prior findings of altered gustatory abilities in children with overweight and obesity. The observed link between impaired interoceptive processes and heightened emotional eating in this group implies that interventions for overweight in children could benefit from targeting interoceptive abilities. This study provides meaningful grounds for further investigations into the roles of taste, emotional eating, and interoceptive abilities for overweight in children and adolescents.

Does body mass index distinguish motor proficiency, social and emotional maturity among adolescent girls?

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to investigate whether different body mass index (BMI) groups could serve as a distinguishing factor for assessing motor proficiency and social and emotional maturity in adolescent girls. METHODS: 140 girls ranging from 12 to 14.5 years old were selected from the schools of Tabriz city, Iran. After their height and weight were measured to calculate body mass index, they completed the following questionnaires: Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of motor proficiency, Second Edition,Vineland Social Maturity Scale, and Emotional Maturity scale. RESULTS: normal-weight girls had a meaningful advantage against overweight and underweight participants in the gross motor factor of motor proficiency (p = 0.004), but there wasn't a meaningful difference in the fine motor p = 0.196) and coordination factors (p = 0.417). Also, social maturity showed an advantage of normal and underweight adolescent girls in the self-help dressing factor (p = 0.018), while the locomotion skills (p = 0.010) factor revealed a better performance of normal weight and overweight groups over underweight adolescents. No significant differences were observed in the emotional maturity subscales (p = 0.63) between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrates that BMI has a direct influence on adolescents' gross motor proficiency and social maturity.

A Close Association between Body Weight, Health-Related Quality of Life, and Risk Behaviors in a Sample of Italian High School Students.

INTRODUCTION: Adolescents experience rapid physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth with different factors contributing to health and well-being. In this view, an important role is played by body weight and related perceptions. The purpose was to determine, in a sample of Italian high school students, whether health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is associated with the different weight status categories (underweight, normal weight, overweight, obese), even considering sex differences. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data were collected from 1826 adolescents (n = 735 males). HRQOL was analyzed using the Italian version of KIDSCREEN-52. RESULTS: Overweight adolescents showed reductions in psychological well-being (p < 0.05) and self-perception (p < 0.05) compared with individuals in other BMI categories. Subjects with obesity reported increased bullying victimization (p < 0.05) and reductions in self-perception and eating disorders (p < 0.001), while underweight individuals were characterized by altered adherence to the Mediterranean diet (p < 0.001), eating disorders (p < 0.001), and problematic use of social media (p < 0.05). No sex differences were found, except for socio-economic status perceptions, where underweight girls reported higher economic well-being than boys (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings may suggest that there is an association between weight status categories and HRQoL that is more pronounced in underweight and overweight adolescents. The association between BMI categories and psychosocial dimensions opens the need to define specific domains on which such preventive interventions should focus, always through a personalized perspective.