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Objective: This study aims to: (1) examine gender differences for weight conscious drinking among college students accounting for the broader phenomenon (e.g. including the Alcohol Effects dimension); and (2) longitudinally examine the effect of weight conscious drinking behaviors on body mass index (BMI). Participants: United States freshmen students from eight participating universities (N= 1,149). Methods: Structural equation modeling was used to model the effect of gender on weight conscious drinking dimensions at 7-month follow-up. Results: Findings suggest a significant effect of gender on Alcohol Effects (β = −.15, SE =.05, p =.005) at 7-month follow-up among college freshmen. Weight conscious drinking dimensions predicted no significant change in BMI at 7-month follow-up among college freshmen. Conclusion: Findings contribute to weight conscious drinking theory and provide campus weight conscious drinking prevention initiatives with evidence to tailor their programming to address female tendencies to engage in compensatory strategies to enhance the psychoactive effects of alcohol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a positive cross-sectional relationship between alcohol-related proactive dietary restriction to feel the effects of alcohol faster (APDR) and binge drinking, a health and safety issue impacting college students. Objective: To examine: 1) the longitudinal predictive ability of varying levels of APDR on binge drinking frequency; and 1a) the strength of the relationship between varying levels of APDR and binge drinking frequency during freshman year of college (n = 1,149). Ordinal logistic regression was used to model the relationship between APDR and binge drinking frequency. Main findings suggest APDR of students who reported eating less than usual (low APDR) prior to drinking to feel the effects of alcohol faster was a significant predictor of binge drinking frequency (1.27 (95% CI, 0.06 to 0.42), Wald χ2 (1) = 8.46, p=.009) at baseline, but not at 7-month follow-up (1.02 (95% CI, −0.18 to 0.23), Wald χ2 (1) =.51, p=.83). APDR for students who reported skipping one or more meals (high APDR) to feel the effects of alcohol faster was not a significant predictor of binge drinking frequency at baseline nor at 7-month follow-up. Low APDR is a significant predictor of binge drinking frequency that is established early in the first semester of college with no significant change occurring in binge drinking frequency over the course of students' freshman year at 7-month follow-up. Campus health professionals are urged to emphasize the detrimental health effects of low APDR early in the first semester of college. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine the effect of weight-conscious drinking and compensatory behavior temporality on binge drinking frequency of college freshmen. Participants: Freshmen (n = 1149) from eight US universities, Fall 2015. Methods: Participants completed the Compensatory Eating Behaviors in Response to Alcohol Consumption Scale and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test–Consumption. Structural equation modeling was used to model the effect of weight-conscious drinking constructs on binge drinking frequency. Results: Bulimia, Dietary Restraint and Exercise, Restriction, proactive Alcohol Effects, during Alcohol Effects, and proactive Dietary Restraint and Exercise factors significantly predicted binge drinking frequency. Conclusion: Weight-conscious drinking among this cohort of college students comprises temporal factors significantly associated with binge drinking frequency. Relationships between Bulimia, Dietary Restraint and Exercise, and Restriction compensatory behaviors and binge drinking should be considered in interventions to address binge drinking among college students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]