The effects of parental mental health and social-emotional coping on adolescent eating disorder attitudes and behaviors

Emotion dysregulation moderates the relationship between alcohol use and eating pathology among heavy-drinking college men

OBJECTIVES

There is limited research examining the relationship between alcohol use and eating pathology in men or factors that may moderate this association. The current study investigated the relationship between alcohol use and eating pathology, and examined emotion dysregulation as a moderator of this association, among heavy-drinking college men.

METHOD

Men mandated to receive an alcohol intervention (N = 88; average age = 19 years) completed questionnaires related to alcohol use, emotion dysregulation, and eating pathology.

RESULTS

Results demonstrated positive relationships between alcohol use and some eating pathology, and a significant interaction between alcohol use and emotion dysregulation. However, results were contrary to hypotheses, such that there was a positive relationship between alcohol use and eating pathology at low levels of emotion dysregulation.

CONCLUSION

Future studies should continue to examine the overall presentation of eating pathology in men and investigate factors that may impact the relationship between alcohol use and eating pathology.

Factors influencing self-concept among adolescents infected with HIV: a cross-sectional survey in China

OVERVIEW

The mental health problems of adolescents with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are important. It is of great significance to explore which factors can affect the self-evaluation and understanding of adolescents with HIV.

OBJECTIVE

We found that adolescents with HIV have a lower level of self-concept than healthy adolescents. This study aimed to determine the factors influencing self-concept among adolescents with HIV in China.

SETTING

A questionnaire was distributed among a total of 290 adolescents in Henan Province, China. One hundred and forty questionnaires were distributed in the case group (adolescents with HIV) and the control group (healthy adolescents) was issued 150 questionnaires.The Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Perceived Social Support Scale and the Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire were adapted for a Chinese population. Differences between the groups were tested for significance using Student's t-test, and analysis of variance was used to test continuous variables. The relationship between environmental personality factors and adolescent self-concept was examined by Pearson correlation analysis. Hierarchical linear regression analysis was used to model the effects of environmental personality factors on self-concept.

RESULTS

The self-concept total score among adolescents with HIV was significantly lower than healthy adolescents (p<0.05). Hierarchical regression analysis indicated that age (β=-0.19, t=-2.16, p=0.03), perceived stress (β=-0.19, t=-2.22, p=0.03), perceived social support (β=0.26, t=3.25, p=0.00), positive coping style (β=0.50, t=5.75, p=0.00) and negative coping style (β=-0.45, t=-5.33, p=0.00) were significantly associated with self-concept total scores.

CONCLUSIONS

The self-concept of adolescents with HIV is related to perceived stress, perceived social support and coping style. These findings underline the significance of self-concept among adolescents infected with HIV.

Eating disorders and substance use in adolescents: How substance users differ from nonsubstance users in an outpatient eating disorders treatment clinic

OBJECTIVE

The relationship between eating disorders (EDs) and substance use (SU) has only been briefly described in literature using mainly adult populations. This study examined the prevalence and characteristics of SU among patients of an adolescent ED outpatient treatment program.

METHOD

A retrospective chart analysis was conducted to determine and subsequently compare medical status, psychosocial factors, treatment course and outcome between patients with and without SU.

RESULTS

Over 60% of patients with SU status (n = 203) reported regularly consuming substances. 33.4% of substance users received a diagnosis involving purging behaviors compared to 5.9% of nonusers. Females composed 96.4% and 81.7% of users and nonusers, respectively. Users reported significantly more self-harm (57.7% of users vs. 38.6% of nonusers) but did not differ significantly in terms of trauma (abuse or victimization; 48.3% of users vs. 44.9% of nonusers). The percentage of ideal body weight significantly improved throughout treatment and did not differ by SU with a mean increase of 5.29% (SD = 13.6) among nonusers compared to 5.45% (SD = 7.5) of users. While users and nonusers did not differ before and after treatment in ED severity, users were more likely than nonusers to drop-out of treatment (41.5% of users vs. 25.2% of nonusers).

DISCUSSION

Adolescents with SU benefit from ED outpatient treatment as much as those without SU, however, users are more likely to drop-out. Therefore, treatment should target these adolescents' emotional dysregulation to improve treatment compliance. Further research is necessary to determine the efficacy of such an approach.

Relationship Between Body Mass Index and Body Image Disturbances Among South African Mothers and Their Daughters Living in Soweto, Johannesburg

In South African families, a phenomenon of mothers' acceptance of stoutness coexists with their daughters' appreciation for thinness. A sample of N = 615 mother-and-daughter pairs was recruited to conjointly identify the relationships toward body image and body mass index between both groups by assessing body weight satisfaction, body esteem, and eating disorders risk. We observed higher prevalence of obesity in mothers and higher eating disorders risk in daughters, while mother-daughter relationships were identified for body mass index and psychometric dimensions. The high prevalence of obesity in mothers and their tolerance for stoutness could expose their daughters to eating disorders and obesity.

Acceptance and psychological change at the higher levels of care: A naturalistic outcome study

This naturalistic outcome study reports on psychological change among a large (N = 617), transdiagnostic sample of eating disordered adults treated at higher levels of care at a private facility. Patients were assessed at admission and discharge for eating disorder psychopathology, depression, personality, and acceptance. Effect sizes ranged from d = .29 to d = 1.29, and the majority of participants (58.2%) were treatment responders, with BN patients showing a higher response rate than AN-R patients. Increased acceptance over the course of treatment was strongly associated with decreased eating disorder risk and may be an important factor in recovery.