Stress, emotional eating behaviour and dietary patterns in children

• Published in: Appetite Vol. 59; no. 3; pp. 762 - 769
• Main Authors: Michels, Nathalie, Sioen, Isabelle, Braet, Caroline, Eiben, Gabriele, Hebestreit, Antje, Huybrechts, Inge, Vanaelst, Barbara, Vyncke, Krishna, De Henauw, Stefaan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2012
• Subjects: 1986; 1995; administration & dosage; adolescence; adulthood; Child; Child Behavior; Child Behavior - psychology; Child, Preschool; childhood; Children; comfort food; consumption; crory ma; deliberate self-harm; depressive symptoms; Diet; Diet - psychology; Diet - standards; Dietary Fats; Dietary Fats - administration & dosage; Dietary Sucrose; Dietary Sucrose - administration & dosage; Eating behaviour; eating habits; Emotional eating; Emotions; Feeding Behavior; Feeding Behavior - psychology; Female; food consumption; foods; fruit consumption; fruits; Health Behavior; Health Sciences; Humans; Hälsovetenskap; ingestion; Interpersonal Relations; journal of abnormal psychology; lipids; lkman s; Male; medicine and science in sports and exercise; overweight; p107; p1686; Peer Group; peers; population; preschool children; psychological stress; psychology; Psychomotor Agitation; questionnaire; questionnaires; snacks; Stress; Stress, Psychological; Surveys and Questionnaires; v27; v95; vegetables; young-people; Eating behaviour; Emotional eating; Children; Diet; Stress
• ISSN: 0195-6663; 1095-8304; 1095-8304
• DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2012.08.010

► Children’s stress was linked with emotional eating and unhealthy dietary patterns. ► Differences in this relation may exist between different constructs of stress. ► Emotional eating behaviour did not mediate the stress–diet relation. ► Actions on stress and related eating behaviour are necessary in obesity prevention. ► This prevention should start in childhood. Psychological stress has been suggested to change dietary pattern towards more unhealthy choices and as such to contribute to overweight. Emotional eating behaviour could be an underlying mediating mechanism. The interrelationship between stress, emotional eating behaviour and dietary patterns has only rarely been examined in young children. Nevertheless, research in children is pivotal as the foundations of dietary habits are established starting from childhood and may track into adulthood. In 437 children (5–12years) of the ChiBS study, stress was measured by questionnaires on stressful events, emotions (happy, angry, sad, anxious) and problems (emotional, peer, conduct and hyperactivity). Data were collected on children’s emotional eating behaviour and also on dietary patterns: frequency of fatty foods, sweet foods, snacks (fat and sweet), fruit and vegetables. Stressful events, negative emotions and problems were positively associated with emotional eating. Positive associations were observed between problems and both sweet and fatty foods consumption. Negative associations were observed between events and fruit and vegetables consumption. Overall, stress was associated with emotional eating and a more unhealthy dietary pattern and could thus contribute to the development of overweight, also in children. Nevertheless, emotional eating behaviour was not observed to mediate the stress–diet relation.