Preadolescents' healthy eating behavior: peeping through the social norms approach

The neurobiology of overeating

Food intake serves to maintain energy homeostasis; however, overeating can result in obesity, which is associated with serious health complications. In this review, we explore the intricate relationship between overeating, obesity, and the underlying neurobiological mechanisms. We review the homeostatic and hedonic feeding systems, highlighting the role of the hypothalamus and reward systems in controlling food intake and energy balance. Dysregulation in both these systems leads to overeating, as seen in genetic syndromes and environmental models affecting appetite regulation when consuming highly palatable food. The concept of "food addiction" is examined, drawing parallels to drug addiction. We discuss the cellular substrate for addiction-related behavior and current pharmacological obesity treatments-in particular, GLP-1 receptor agonists-showcasing synaptic plasticity in the context of overeating and palatable food exposure. A comprehensive model integrating insights from addiction research is proposed to guide effective interventions for maladaptive feeding behaviors. Ultimately, unraveling the neurobiological basis of overeating holds promise for addressing the pressing public health issue of obesity.

Surviving and Sustaining: The perceived importance of sustainable diet practices among immigrant mothers

Amidst an increasing emphasis on sustainability, ongoing conflicts and humanitarian crises pose significant challenges. This study explored how Ukrainian mothers in Denmark navigate the adoption sustainable diets while addressing challenges such as displacement and cultural adaptation. Using a qualitative approach, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 22 mothers from diverse socio-demographic backgrounds, with durations of residence in Denmark ranging from 1.5 to 17 years. Based on a reflexive thematic analysis, three main themes were generated: 1) Surviving: The non-urgency of sustainability; 2) Sustaining: A priority of a healthy diet; 3) Paradise Lost: The essence and taste of home. Drawing on the consumer socialisation theory and acculturation elements, this research identified three acculturation strategies regarding the perceived importance of sustainable diet practices: separation, marginalization and, driven by reverse consumer socialisation, integration. The study finds that mothers with refugee background facing higher stress levels tend to adopt marginalization strategies. It is proposed that for participants who had settled in Denmark before 2022, the emotional burden of war leads to a melancholic separation. This study highlights the need for culturally sensitive policies that promote sustainable practices while addressing the immediate needs of displaced populations, advocating for inclusive education on feasible sustainability practices and framing them as beneficial for both health and the environment to resonate with diverse communities. Future research should deepen the understanding of reverse consumer socialisation dynamics within immigrant families.

Bringing down barriers to children's healthy eating: a critical review of opportunities, within a complex food system

This narrative review revises the scientific evidence of recent years on healthy eating in children and adolescents, making sense of promising avenues of action, from a food system perspective. A conceptual framework is provided to better understand how eating habits of children and adolescents are shaped to identify key multisectoral approaches that should be implemented to promote healthier diets. The following influencing factors are discussed: individual factors (physiological and psychological factors, food preferences and food literacy competencies), factors within the personal and socio-cultural food environments, external food environments, and the supply chain. In each section, the main barriers to healthy eating are briefly discussed focussing on how to overcome them. Finally, a discussion with recommendations of actions is provided, anchored in scientific knowledge, and transferable to the general public, industry, and policymakers. We highlight that multidisciplinary approaches are not enough, a systems approach, with a truly holistic view, is needed. Apart from introducing systemic changes, a variety of interventions can be implemented at different levels to foster healthier diets in children through fostering healthier and more sustainable food environments, facilitating pleasurable sensory experiences, increasing their food literacy, and enhancing their agency by empowering them to make better food related decisions. Acknowledging children as unique individuals is required, through interpersonal interactions, as well as their role in their environments. Actions should aim to enable children and adolescents as active participants within sustainable food systems, to support healthier dietary behaviours that can be sustained throughout life, impacting health at a societal level.

Are family meals and social eating behaviour associated with depression, anxiety, and stress in adolescents? The EHDLA study

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the association between family meals and social eating behaviour with depression, anxiety and stress symptoms among Spanish adolescents.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study with data obtained from a representative sample of adolescents aged 12-17 years from Valle de Ricote, Murcia, Spain. Emotional symptomatology was evaluated with the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale. The frequency of family meals and social eating behaviour were self-reported.

RESULTS

Each additional point in social eating behaviour decreased the probability of having a higher number of depressive (OR = 0.83; 95% CI, 0.75-0.92), anxiety (OR = 0.88; 95% CI, 0.80-0.97) and stress (OR = 0.90; 95% CI, 0.82-0.99) symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Higher social eating behaviour was associated with lower probabilities of higher number of depressive, anxiety and stress symptoms.

Why context matters when changing the diet: A narrative review of placebo, nocebo, and psychosocial context effects and implications for outcome research and nutrition counselling

Placebo (PE) and nocebo effects (NE) have been subjects of systematic research in medicine and psychotherapy for many decades to distinguish between the (specific) pharmacological effect of medication and the (unspecific) effect of the context. Despite this significant research, the awareness, operationalisation, and reflection of the multiplicity of PE, NE, and psychosocial context effects (PSCE) is currently limited when researching outcomes of diet changes in studies without randomisation and placebo control. This neglection is critical as it could systematically influence outcomes by moderating and mediating them and thus reducing the validity and evidence base of these studies. Therefore, we performed a (non-systematic) narrative review (NR) on the following objectives: (1) present a concise overview about the relevance of PE, NE, and PSCE in medicine and nutrition research; (2) review the current state of research on reflecting context effects when studying diet changes; (3) provide useful theoretical foundations via consideration and integration of micro- and macro context effects; (4) operationalise as hypotheses the potential PE, NE, and PSCE which are specific for researching diet changes; and (5) derive their impact for future research as well as for nutrition counselling. The electronic search in this NR for objective (2) identified N = 5 publications and for objective (4) we found N = 61 articles retrieved in the first round of search, additional references were identified by a manual and snowball search among the cited references resulting finally in N = 37. This NR offers a synoptical basis to foster awareness and operationalisation of a variety of PE, NE, and PSCE. Interdisciplinary research teams should monitor these factors using, e.g., qualitative, mixed-method studies, process evaluation, item bank approaches, moderator and mediator analysis that might reveal substantially new insights, and outcomes of relevance to science and nutrition counselling. Nevertheless, the present NR has several limitations, especially as it is non-systematic, because it is a very heterogeneous field of research, in which the topic we are investigating is usually regarded as marginal and subordinate. Therefore, future research should conduct systematic reviews and particularly theory-based primary studies (experimental research) on hypotheses of PE, NE, and PSCE in outcome research in diet changes.

Pediatric Adapted Liking Survey (PALS) with Tailored Nutrition Education Messages: Application to a Middle School Setting

We tested the feasibility of a school-based, liking-based behavioral screener (Pediatric Adapted Liking Survey (PALS)) and message program to motivate healthy diet and activity behaviors. Students, recruited from middle- (n = 195) or low-income (n = 310) schools, online-reported: likes/dislikes of foods/beverages and physical/sedentary activities, scored into healthy behavior indexes (HBI); perceived food insecurity; and sleep indicators. Students received tailored motivating or reinforcing messages (aligned with behavior change theories) and indicated their willingness to improve target behaviors as well as program feasibility (acceptability; usefulness). Although HBIs averaged lower in the lower versus middle-income school, frequencies of food insecurity were similar (39-44% of students). Students in both schools reported sleep concerns (middle-income school-43% reported insufficient hours of sleep/night; low-income school-55% reported excessive daytime sleepiness). Students across both schools confirmed the PALS acceptability (>85% agreement to answering questions quickly and completion without help) and usefulness (≥73% agreed PALS got them thinking about their behaviors) as well as the tailored message acceptability (≥73% reported the messages as helpful; learning new information; wanting to receive more messages) and usefulness (73% reported "liking" to try one behavioral improvement). Neither message type nor response varied significantly by food insecurity or sleep measures. Thus, this program feasibly delivered students acceptable and useful messages to motivate healthier behaviors and identified areas for school-wide health promotion.