Prevalence and Predictors of Emotional Eating among Healthy Young Saudi Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic
1
Department of Community Health Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
2
Chair for Biomarkers of Chronic Diseases, Riyadh Biochemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Nutrients 2020, 12(10), 2923; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12102923
Received: 22 August 2020 / Revised: 19 September 2020 / Accepted: 21 September 2020 / Published: 24 September 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition within and beyond Corona Virus)
Emotional eating (EE) is prevalent among women and is associated with obesity. The coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and mandatory quarantine increased the risk of mental symptoms and, inferentially, emotional eating (EE). We investigated the EE prevalence and predictors during this pandemic. Overall, 638 women, ages 18–39, completed an online survey incorporating the Emotional Eating Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. We asked about nutrition and collected data on weight, height, and pandemic responses. Most respondents (47.2%) reported low EE; 40.4% were “moderate” and 12.4% “high” emotional eaters; 42.8% reported depression, 27% anxiety, 71% moderate stress, and 12.5% severe stress. The main EE indicators/predictors were fat intake (β = 0.192, p = 0.004), number of meals (β = 0.187, p < 0.001), sugar consumption (β = 0.150, p < 0.001), body mass index (β = 0.149, p < 0.001), stress (β = 0.143, p = 0.004), energy intake (β = 0.134, p = 0.04), and fast food intake frequency (β = 0.111, p < 0.01). EE score correlated negatively with increased family income (β = −0.081, p = 0.049). Higher stress correlated with worse sleep, less sleep, and less physical activity. Emotional eating is common among young Saudi women during the pandemic. We recommend healthy food choices and increased physical activity to improve sleep and mitigate stress.
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Keywords:
Emotional Eating Scale; Increased intake; COVID-19; quarantine; stress; BMI; food consumption; young women
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MDPI and ACS Style
Al-Musharaf, S. Prevalence and Predictors of Emotional Eating among Healthy Young Saudi Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Nutrients 2020, 12, 2923. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12102923
AMA Style
Al-Musharaf S. Prevalence and Predictors of Emotional Eating among Healthy Young Saudi Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Nutrients. 2020; 12(10):2923. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12102923
Chicago/Turabian StyleAl-Musharaf, Sara. 2020. "Prevalence and Predictors of Emotional Eating among Healthy Young Saudi Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic" Nutrients 12, no. 10: 2923. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12102923
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