Associations between weight-based teasing and disordered eating behaviors among youth

Alex G Rubin¹, Natasha A Schvey², Lisa M Shank³, Deborah R Altman⁴, Taylor N Swanson³, Eliana Ramirez¹, Nia A Moore¹, Manuela Jaramillo¹, Sophie Ramirez¹, Elisabeth K Davis¹, Miranda M Broadney¹, Sarah LeMay-Russell⁴, Meghan E Byrne⁴, Megan K Parker⁴, Sheila M Brady¹, Nichole R Kelly⁵, Marian Tanofsky-Kraff⁶, Jack A Yanovski¹

Affiliations

¹ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
² Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Medical and Clinical Psychology Department, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA. Electronic address: natasha.schvey@usuhs.edu.
³ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Military Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (MiCOR) Program, Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA; Metis Foundation, 300 Convent Street, Suite 1330, San Antonio, TX 78205, USA.
⁴ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Medical and Clinical Psychology Department, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.
⁵ Department of Counseling Psychology and Human Services, University of Oregon, 5207 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-5207, USA.
⁶ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Medical and Clinical Psychology Department, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA; Military Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (MiCOR) Program, Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.

PMID: 33831812
PMCID: PMC8131258
DOI: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2021.101504

Associations between weight-based teasing and disordered eating behaviors among youth

Alex G Rubin et al. Eat Behav. 2021 Apr.

. 2021 Apr:41:101504.

doi: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2021.101504. Epub 2021 Mar 29.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
² Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Medical and Clinical Psychology Department, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA. Electronic address: natasha.schvey@usuhs.edu.
³ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Military Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (MiCOR) Program, Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA; Metis Foundation, 300 Convent Street, Suite 1330, San Antonio, TX 78205, USA.
⁴ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Medical and Clinical Psychology Department, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.
⁵ Department of Counseling Psychology and Human Services, University of Oregon, 5207 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-5207, USA.
⁶ Section on Growth and Obesity, Division of Intramural Research Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Medical and Clinical Psychology Department, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA; Military Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (MiCOR) Program, Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.

PMID: 33831812
PMCID: PMC8131258
DOI: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2021.101504

Abstract

Weight-based teasing (WBT) is commonly reported among youth and is associated with disinhibited and disordered eating. Specifically, youth who experience WBT may engage in disordered eating behaviors to cope with the resultant negative affect. Therefore, we examined associations between WBT and disordered eating behaviors among youth and assessed whether negative affect mediated these relationships. Two hundred one non-treatment seeking youth (8-17y) completed questionnaires assessing WBT, disinhibited eating, depression, and anxiety. Disordered eating and loss-of-control (LOC) eating were assessed via semi-structured interview. Analyses of covariance were conducted to examine relationships between WBT and eating-related variables, and bootstrapping mediation models were used to evaluate negative affect (a composite of depressive and anxiety symptoms) as a mediator of these associations. All models were adjusted for sex, race, age, and adiposity. Among 201 participants (13.1 ± 2.8y; 54.2% female; 30.3% Black; 32.8% with overweight/obesity), WBT was associated with emotional eating, eating in the absence of hunger, and disordered eating attitudes and behaviors (ps ≤ 0.02). These associations were all mediated by negative affect. WBT was also associated with a threefold greater likelihood of reporting a recent LOC eating episode (p = .049). Among boys and girls across weight strata, WBT was associated with multiple aspects of disordered eating and these relationships were mediated by negative affect. Longitudinal studies are needed to clarify the directionality of these associations and to identify subgroups of youth that may be particularly vulnerable to WBT and its sequelae.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02390765.

Keywords: Adolescents; Children; Disordered eating; Loss-of-control eating; Negative affect; Weight-based teasing.

Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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Figures

**Figure 1.**
Conceptual mediation model examining the relationships between weight-based teasing, negative affect, and disinhibited and disordered eating

See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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Associations between weight-based teasing and disordered eating behaviors among youth

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Associations between weight-based teasing and disordered eating behaviors among youth

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