Negative Affectivity and Emotion Dysregulation as Mediators between ADHD and Disordered Eating: A Systematic Review.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is associated with disordered eating, especially addictive-like eating behavior (i.e., binge eating, food addiction, loss of control overeating). The exact mechanisms underlying this association are unclear. ADHD and addictive-like eating behavior are both associated with negative affectivity and emotion dysregulation, which we hypothesized are mediators of this relationship. The purpose of this systematic review was to review the evidence related to this hypothesis from studies assessing the relationship between childhood or adulthood ADHD symptomatology, negative affectivity, emotion dysregulation and addictive-like eating behavior. The systematic review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations. The literature search was conducted in PubMed and PsycINFO (publication date: January 2015 to August 2020; date of search: 2nd September 2020). Out of 403 potentially relevant articles, 41 were retained; 38 publications reported that ADHD and disordered eating or addictive-like eating behavior were significantly associated, including 8 articles that suggested a mediator role of negative affectivity or emotion dysregulation. Sixteen publications reported that the association between ADHD symptomatology and disordered eating or addictive-like eating behavior differed according to gender, eating behavior and ADHD symptoms (hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention). We discuss the practical implications of these findings and directions future research.
Competing Interests: S.C. declares reimbursement for travel and accommodation expenses from the Association for Child and Adolescent Central Health (ACAMH) in relation to lectures delivered for ACAMH, and from Healthcare Convention for educational activity on ADHD. N.B. reports personal fees from Lundbeck, Astra-Zeneca and D&A Pharma, unrelated to the submitted work. P.B. reports personal fees and non-financial support from Lundbeck, personal fees from Astra-Zeneca and D&A Pharma, unrelated to the submitted work. S.E.A., CR A.D.L. and SB declares no conflict of interest.