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Background: Physical activity (PA) seems to be important for long-term weight loss following bariatric surgery, however, studies provide evidence for insufficient PA levels in bariatric patients. Research found self-efficacy to be associated with PA and weight bias internalization, whose influence on mental and physical health has been shown in recent studies. Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of general self-efficacy on PA, mediated by weight bias internalization. Setting: Consecutive multicenter registry study conducted in six German bariatric surgery centers. Methods: In N = 179 bariatric surgery candidates, general self-efficacy, weight bias internalization, and different intensities of PA were assessed by self-report questionnaires. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the assumed mediational relationship. Results: After controlling for sociodemographic variables, weight bias internalization fully mediated the association between general self-efficacy and moderate-intense as well as vigorous-intense PA. Lower general self-efficacy predicted greater weight bias internalization, which in turn predicted lower levels of moderate-intense and vigorous-intense PA. Conclusions: The results suggest an influence of weight bias internalization on preoperative PA in bariatric surgery candidates. Subsequently, implementation of interventions addressing weight bias internalization in the usual treatment of bariatric surgery candidates might enhance patients’ preoperative PA, while longitudinal analyses are needed in order to further examine its predictive value on PA following bariatric surgery.

Background: Binge-eating disorder (BED) as a distinct eating disorder category and night eating syndrome (NES) as a form of Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorders were recently included in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). Objectives: This study sought to investigate the prevalence of BED and NES and associations with various forms of non-normative eating behavior and psychopathology in prebariatric patients. Setting: Within a consecutive multicenter registry study, patients in six bariatric surgery centers in Germany were recruited. Methods: Overall, 233 prebariatric patients were assessed using the Eating Disorder Examination and self-report questionnaires. Assessment was unrelated to clinical procedures. Results: Diagnostic criteria for full-syndrome BED and NES were currently met by 4.3% and 8.2% of prebariatric patients, respectively. In addition, 8.6% and 6.9% of patients met subsyndromal BED and NES criteria, respectively. Comorbid BED and NES diagnoses were present in 3.9% of patients. In comparison to patients without any eating disorder symptoms, patients with BED and NES reported greater emotional eating, eating in the absence of hunger, and more symptoms of food addiction. Moreover, differences between patients with BED and NES emerged with more objective binge eating episodes and higher levels of eating concern, weight concern, and global eating disorder psychopathology in patients with BED. Conclusions: BED and NES were shown to be prevalent among prebariatric patients, with some degree of overlap between diagnoses. Associations with non-normative eating behavior and psychopathology point to their clinical significance and discriminant validity.