1. Food insecurity associated with elevated eating disorder symptoms, impairment, and eating disorder diagnoses in an American University student sample before and during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic
- Author
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Victoria L. Perko, Kayla Bjorlie, Brianne N. Richson, Sofia Mildrum Chana, Joseph Ayres, Jennifer E. Wildes, Marianna L. Thomeczek, Kara A. Christensen, Kylie Christian, and Kelsie T. Forbush
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,050103 clinical psychology ,Adolescent ,Universities ,eating disorders ,Midwestern United States ,Cohort Studies ,Feeding and Eating Disorders ,03 medical and health sciences ,Young Adult ,0302 clinical medicine ,COVID‐19 ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,medicine ,Humans ,0501 psychology and cognitive sciences ,Young adult ,university students ,Students ,Pandemics ,Food security ,Binge eating ,Bulimia nervosa ,business.industry ,05 social sciences ,digestive, oral, and skin physiology ,COVID-19 ,Original Articles ,medicine.disease ,030227 psychiatry ,Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale ,Psychiatry and Mental health ,Eating disorders ,Food Insecurity ,Female ,Original Article ,medicine.symptom ,business ,Cohort study ,Psychopathology ,Clinical psychology - Abstract
Objective This study tested the association between food insecurity and eating disorder (ED) pathology, including probable ED diagnosis, among two cohorts of university students before and during the beginning of the COVID‐19 pandemic. Method Students (n = 579) from a large Midwestern American university completed self‐report questionnaires assessing frequency of ED behaviors, ED‐related impairment, and individual food insecurity as measured by the Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale 5, Clinical Impairment Assessment, and Radimer/Cornell, respectively. Chi‐square tests and MANOVA with post‐hoc corrections were conducted to compare demographic characteristics, ED pathology, and probable ED diagnosis prevalence between students with and without individual food insecurity. Results Partially supporting hypotheses, MANOVA indicated significantly greater frequency of objective binge eating, compensatory fasting, and ED‐related impairment for students with food insecurity compared with individuals without food insecurity. Chi‐squared tests showed higher prevalence of ED diagnoses among individuals with food insecurity compared with those without food security (47.6 vs. 31.1%, respectively, p
- Published
- 2021