A longitudinal study of eating behaviours in childhood and later eating disorder behaviours and diagnoses
Year: 2019
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Eating behaviours in childhood are considered as risk factors for eating disorder behaviours and diagnoses in adolescence. However, few longitudinal studies have examined this association. AIMS: We investigated associations between childhood eating behaviours during the first ten years of life and eating disorder behaviours (binge eating, purging, fasting and excessive exercise) and diagnoses (anorexia nervosa, binge eating disorder, purging disorder and bulimia nervosa) at 16 years. METHOD: Data on 4760 participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children were included. Longitudinal trajectories of parent-rated childhood eating behaviours (8 time points, 1.3-9 years) were derived by latent class growth analyses. Eating disorder diagnoses were derived from self-reported, parent-reported and objectively measured anthropometric data at age 16 years. We estimated associations between childhood eating behaviours and eating disorder behaviours and diagnoses, using multivariable logistic regression models. RESULTS: Childhood overeating was associated with increased risk of adolescent binge eating (risk difference, 7%; 95% CI 2 to 12) and binge eating disorder (risk difference, 1%; 95% CI 0.2 to 3). Persistent undereating was associated with higher anorexia nervosa risk in adolescent girls only (risk difference, 6%; 95% CI, 0 to 12). Persistent fussy eating was associated with greater anorexia nervosa risk (risk difference, 2%; 95% CI 0 to 4). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest continuities of eating behaviours into eating disorders from early life to adolescence. It remains to be determined whether childhood eating behaviours are an early manifestation of a specific phenotype or whether the mechanisms underlying this continuity are more complex. Findings have the potential to inform preventative strategies for eating disorders.
DOI: 10.1192/bjp.2019.174
Institutions: University College London, King's College London, Karolinska Institutet, National Institute for Health and Care Research, Maudsley Hospital, NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, University of Geneva, University of Bristol, MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University Hospital of Geneva
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funders: Wellcome Trust, NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust/Institute of Cancer Research, National Institute for Health and Care Research, King's College London, University College London, University of Bristol, Karolinska Institutet, Vetenskapsrådet, Université de Genève, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Medical Research Council, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, National Institute of Mental Health
Awards: G1192034430, Reproductive and cardio-metabolic health, G1493295073, G2024575111, 1/7 Psychiatric Genomics Consortium: Finding actionable variation, Polygenic and trans-diagnostic risk for anorexia nervosa and obsessive-compulsive disorder: Novel associations with emotional, behavioral, and cognitive dysfunction in a population-based cohort, G303339423, The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC): A multi- generation, longitudinal resource focusing on life course health and well- being., G3831911591, G3990617762, G5012122282, G5162486390, G5260012927, G5562631338, Premorbid metabolism and growth in anorexia nervosa: A genetically informed exploration of risk, G6689231961, The developmental role of metabolism, appetite and growth in eating disorders: exploring novel longitudinal risk pathways, G7194418384, G7264751730, G801210579, G8089316978, G8502142660, 1/7 PGC: Advancing Discovery and Impact
OpenAlex ID: W2966780988