Greater than 40% of women are obese, a key risk factor for cardiometabolic, neurocognitive disease, mood disorders, and certain cancers. Obesity and unfavorable body composition can compromise physical and psychological health and well-being. Preliminary evidence demonstrates Meditative Movement (i.e., Tai Chi Easy) improves health outcomes and body composition among midlife/older women. This single-group pilot study explored relationships between well-being predictors related to body composition and associated behavioral risk factors in midlife/older women pre-to-post Tai Chi Easy intervention.

Eligible women 45–75 years old, participated in once-weekly 30-minute Tai Chi Easy classes over 8-weeks. Pre/post-intervention data included self-report surveys and on-site body composition. Multivariate linear regression models were fitted with putative predictor variables having correlations p-values of 0.20 or less with sleep quality and eating behaviors.

Participants (N = 36) (M age = 53.7) were White (80.4%) and attended ≥ 4 years of college (70.6%). Analyses resulted in one independent variable per model as a predictor of the dependent variables of sleep quality and emotional eating. Results indicated: (1) stress explained 13.4% sleep quality variance (F (2, 20) = 2.71, p = 0.09) and (2) self-compassion explained 42.1% emotional eating variance (F (2, 31) = 12.54, p < .01).

Findings suggest stress and self-compassion partially explain variance in the dependent variables of sleep quality and emotional eating, both associated behavioral risk factors of body composition. Additional research may guide interventions to test efficacy and examine mediators to improve well-being predictors, body composition, and associated behavioral risk factors among midlife/older women.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is often accompanied by changes in appetite and weight. Prior task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) findings suggest these MDD phenotypes are associated with altered reward and interoceptive processing.

Using resting-state fMRI data, we compared the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF) and seed-based connectivity (SBC) among hyperphagic (n = 77), hypophagic (n = 66), and euphagic (n = 42) MDD groups and a healthy comparison group (n = 38). We examined fALFF and SBC in a mask restricted to reward [nucleus accumbens (NAcc), putamen, caudate, ventral pallidum, and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)] and interoceptive (anterior insula and hypothalamus) regions and also performed exploratory whole-brain analyses. SBC analyses included as seeds the NAcc and also regions demonstrating group differences in fALFF (i.e. right lateral OFC and right anterior insula). All analyses used threshold-free cluster enhancement.

Mask-restricted analyses revealed stronger fALFF in the right lateral OFC, and weaker fALFF in the right anterior insula, for hyperphagic MDD v. healthy comparison. We also found weaker SBC between the right lateral OFC and left anterior insula for hyperphagic MDD v. healthy comparison. Whole-brain analyses revealed weaker fALFF in the right anterior insula, and stronger SBC between the right lateral OFC and left precentral gyrus, for hyperphagic MDD v. healthy comparison. Findings were no longer significant after controlling for body mass index, which was higher for hyperphagic MDD.

Our results suggest hyperphagic MDD may be associated with altered activity in and connectivity between interoceptive and reward regions.

Obesity is one of the leading problems of today’s society. According to WHO, 650 million people worldwide are obese, which is 13% of total population (in Croatia 21.5%). There are various psychodynamic theories that interpret the psychological aspects of obesity.

The aim of this paper is to present psychodynamic and contemporary psychiatric concepts that explain the interrelated phenomena presenting in obese patients.

The review of the literature included the investigation of the existing studies in the field of modern psychiatry, as well as previous knowledge in the field of psychodynamics.

Obesity is associated with the emptiness of not recognizing one’s own emotions from hunger, and the need for constant replacement. The everyday life of the obese is filled with shame, an uncomfortable perception that is so intense that can be unbearable. The emptiness and shame which overwhelm and create discomfort cannot be fulfilled by constant food intake and are associated with pathological narcissism (grandiose or vulnerable), which in turn is associated with more regressive behaviour. Thus, obesity may sometimes be associated with addictive behaviours, and a cognition that a bad pattern of rewarding behaviour through food has been adopted in parallel with poor self-control.

Relationship between psychodynamic phenomena and obesity is complex and multidimensional. Further research is needed in order to ameliorate our understanding of these connections.

No significant relationships.

To assess the relationship between exposure to social media food messages and self-reported adolescent eating outcomes (including food intake, perceived norms and food literacy).

A cross-sectional survey was used to assess reported exposure to core and non-core food messages (including marketing messages) on social media, as well as reported food intake, perceived norms, food literacy, attitudes, self-regulation, among others.

18 secondary schools across Flanders, Belgium.

1002 adolescents 11–19 years of age.

Self-reported exposure to food marketing and overall food messages on social media was positively associated with eating attitudes, behaviours, perceived norms and food literacy among adolescents. Interestingly, the relationship between food exposure and intake was shaped differently depending on food type; descriptive norms mediated the positive relationship between non-core food social media exposure and non-core food intake (e.g. indirect effect estimate on self-reported sweets consumption is 0·005, se 0·002, P < 0·01), while food literacy mediated the positive relationship between core food social media exposure and core food intake (e.g. indirect effect estimate on self-reported vegetable consumption is 0·01, se 0·003, P < 0·000).

This study highlights the significance of social media in relation to adolescent eating. There is an opportunity for health professionals to use social media in the promotion of core food among adolescents. We call for relevant policy actions to regulate the marketing of non-core food to adolescents on social media.

To assess changes in dietary patterns among youths in China after COVID-19 lockdown.

This study was based on the COVID-19 Impact on Lifestyle Change Survey (COINLICS), a national retrospective survey established in early May 2020. The questionnaire was distributed through social media platforms. The sociodemographic information and routine dietary patterns before and after lockdown of participants were investigated. t tests and χ2 tests were used to compare the differences in consumption patterns of twelve major food groups and beverages between sex and across educational levels before and after lockdown. Factor analysis was employed to obtain the main dietary patterns.

China.

A total of 10 082 youths.

A significant decrease was observed in the average weekly frequency of rice intake, while significant increases were observed in the frequency of intake of wheat products, other staple foods, fish, eggs, fresh vegetables, preserved vegetables, fresh fruit and dairy products (all P values < 0·01). Heterogeneities of average weekly frequency existed between sex and across educational levels to different extents. The three main dietary patterns derived were loaded most heavily on dairy products, rice and wheat products, separately; the rice pattern became more dominant than the wheat products pattern after lockdown. The frequency of sugar-sweetened beverage consumption had decreased, while the frequency of other beverages had increased.

Our timely survey would inform policymakers and health professionals of these significant changes in youths’ dietary patterns after lockdown, with heterogeneities observed to different extents between sex and across educational levels, for better policy-making and public health practice.

To validate an Arabic version of the Eating Attitude Test (EAT-26) and identify factors (such as depression, stress, anxiety and body dissatisfaction) that might be associated with disordered eating among a sample of the Lebanese population.

Cross-sectional study.

All Lebanese governorates.

A total of 811 participants randomly selected participated in this 5-month study (January–May 2018).

The EAT-26 scale items converged over a solution of six factors that had an eigenvalue over 1, explaining a total of 60·07 % of the variance (Cronbach’s α = 0·895). The prevalence of disordered eating attitudes was 23·8 %. Higher EAT-26 scores (disordered eating attitudes) were significantly associated with higher depression (β = 0·325), higher emotional eating (β = 0·083), daily weighing (β = 3·430), higher physical activity (β = 0·05), starving to reduce weight (β = 4·94) and feeling pressure from TV/magazine to lose weight (β = 3·95).

The Arabic version of EAT-26 can be a useful instrument for screening and assessing disordered eating attitudes in clinical practice and research. Some factors seem to be associated with more disordered eating attitudes among participants for whom psychological counseling may be needed. Yet, our findings are considered preliminary, and further studies are warranted to confirm them.

To estimate the prevalence and sociodemographic characteristics of youth and young adults in major Canadian cities with self-reported vegetarian dietary practices and examine efforts to alter their diets.

Data were collected in autumn 2016 via web-based surveys. Respondents reported vegetarian dietary practices (vegan, vegetarian or pescatarian) and efforts in the preceding year to consume more or less of several nutrients, food groups and/or foods with particular attributes. Logistic regression models examined sociodemographic correlates of each vegetarian dietary practice and differences in other eating practices by diet type.

Participants were recruited from five major Canadian cities.

Youth and young adults, aged 16–30 years (n 2566).

Overall, 13·6 % of respondents reported vegetarian dietary practices: 6·6 % vegetarian, 4·5 % pescatarian and 2·5 % vegan. Sex, race/ethnicity, self-reported frequency of using the Nutrition Facts table and health literacy were significantly correlated with self-reported vegetarian dietary practice (P < 0·01 for all). Efforts to consume more fruits and vegetables (66·8 %) and protein (54·8 %), and less sugar (61·3 %) and processed foods (54·7 %), were prevalent overall. Respondents with vegetarian dietary practices were more likely to report efforts to consume fewer carbohydrates and animal products, and more organic, locally produced, ethically sourced/sustainably sourced/fair trade and non-GM foods (P < 0·01 for all), compared with those without these reported dietary practices.

Nearly 14 % of the sampled youth and young adults in major Canadian cities reported vegetarian dietary practices and may be especially likely to value and engage in behaviours related to health-conscious diets and sustainable food production.