Relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and internet addiction with insomnia and depression as multiple mediators during the COVID-19 pandemic: a three-wave longitudinal study in Chinese college students

BACKGROUND

The relationships between fruit and vegetable consumption (FV) and Internet addiction (IA) in college students still remained unknown together with the internal mechanisms. Given the limitations of previous cross-sectional design, longitudinal research was necessary to be conducted to explore more precise correlations. Using the three-wave data in a longitudinal design, this study aimed to explore the association between FV and IA among Chinese college students and potential multiple mediators of insomnia and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

A total of 579 college students were recruited during three waves (T1: August 2020; T2: November 2020; T3: February 2021). FV (T1), insomnia (T2), depression (T2) and IA (T3) symptoms were reported. The descriptive statistics of the sociodemographic characteristics and correlation analyses of the study variables were calculated. The significance of the mediation effects was measured conducting a bootstrap method with SPSS PROCESS macro.

RESULTS

FV was negatively correlated with IA, and lower FV predicted higher risk of IA. Depression mediated the association between FV and subsequent IA. Insomnia and depression were multiple mediators, which in turn mediated the links between FV and subsequent IA.

CONCLUSIONS

The three-wave longitudinal study has revealed that FV had indirect effects on IA through individual mediating factor of depression and multiple mediating roles of insomnia and depression sequentially. The policy makers, educators and researchers should pay attention to the impact of the interventions from healthy diet, in order to optimize the coping strategies for preventing college students from IA.

Changes in the networks of complex posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms among Chinese college students with childhood trauma

OBJECTIVE

To advance understanding of the development of complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) symptoms longitudinally and facilitate future treatments, the present study investigated changes in the network of CPTSD symptoms among Chinese college students with childhood trauma.

METHOD

A longitudinal study was conducted with college students, following them three times at 3-month intervals. CPTSD symptoms were measured using the International Trauma Questionnaire, and childhood trauma was assessed by the revised Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale. The final sample consisted of 294 participants with childhood trauma at baseline measurement (28.9% were males, Mage = 20.76 years). Comparisons of cross-sectional networks and cross-lagged panel network (CLPN) analysis were performed to characterize the features and changes of interactions among CPTSD symptoms.

RESULTS

Sense of failure and isolation were the core symptoms in the cross-sectional networks of CPTSD symptoms. The comparison of cross-sectional networks indicated that the global network strength was stable, and no node's strength centrality and only one edge weight changed significantly from Time 1 (T1) to Time 3 (T3). The findings of the CLPN model reveal that worthlessness, difficulties with intimacy, and flashbacks have the highest out-expected influence. In the T1-T3 network, the strongest edge was from worthlessness to sense of failure.

CONCLUSIONS

Cross-sectional network analyses and comparisons revealed the characteristics of CPTSD networks at multiple time points, while the CLPN analysis identified the longitudinal dynamics of CPTSD symptoms. These provide insights for designing more targeted intervention plans for college students with childhood trauma. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).