Age effects in eating disorder baseline risk factors and prevention intervention effects

Abstract

Objective Examine the impact of age on baseline eating disorder symptoms/risk factors and on the effects of completing three variants of an eating disorder prevention program. Method 680 women (60% White) were randomized to clinician-led Body Project groups, peer-led Body Project groups, an Internet-based version of the Body Project (eBodyProject), or educational video control condition. Participants, who were on average 22.2 years old (SD = 7.1, range 17-64, median = 19), were assessed at pretest, posttest, and 6-month follow-up. Results Two of the seven baseline variables were significantly associated with age, indicating that older age was associated with lower reported dieting (r = −.12) and better psychosocial functioning (r = −.13). Interactions indicated that age moderated the intervention effects, such that group-based programs were superior to the Internet-delivered version in terms of eating disorder symptom reductions for women up to age 20, whereas the Internet-delivered program were superior to group-based interventions, particularly in terms of BMI reduction, for women over approximately age 25. None of the four tests examining whether age moderated the effects of delivering Body Project groups by mental health clinicians versus undergraduate peer educators were significant. Conclusions Results suggest that group-based versions of the Body Project should be implemented with young women up to the age of 20, as they produce larger eating disorder symptom reductions, whereas the Internet version of the Body Project should be implemented with women aged 25 or older, as it produces superior weight loss/gain prevention effects.

Factors associated with disordered eating behaviors and attitudes in older women

“…Besides, a growing body of research has examined this issue but in middle-aged women. Even if, in a sample of women aged 17-64, an older age was found to be associated with lower reported dieting and better psychological functioning [18], a review on the predictors associated with body dissatisfaction and disordered eating concluded that most factors identified for young women, such as BMI or importance of appearance, could also apply for middle-aged women [19]. Specific factors, such as menopausal status and aging anxiety also seemed to play a role in middle-aged women [19].…”

Online prevention of disordered eating in at-risk young-adult women: a two-country pragmatic randomized controlled trial

“…Age was included as a proxy for duration of body image concerns (Rohde et al , in press). Whilst participants were accepted across the WCS score spectrum in line with the pragmatic RCT, we expected the majority of participants to score >=47.…”

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms and disordered eating in the English general population

“…Specifically, sex (Skogli, Teicher, Andersen, Hovik, & ie, 2013;Striegel-Moore & Bulik, 2007), age (Rohde, Stice, Shaw, Gau, & Ohls, 2017;Sharma & Couture, 2014), ethnicity (Franko, 2007;Morgan, Staff, Hillemeier, Farkas, & Maczuga, 2013), alcohol dependence and drug use (Hudson, Weiss, Pope, McElroy, & Mirin, 1992;Lee, Humphreys, Flory, Liu, & Glass, 2011;Levy et al, 2014;Taylor, Peveler, Hibbert, & Fairburn, 1993;Walfish, Stenmark, Sarco, Shealy, & Krone, 1992), intelligence quotient (Cuesta-Zamora, González-Martí, & García-López, 2018;Frazier, Demaree, & Youngstrom, 2004), stressful life events, perceived stress (Combs, Canu, Broman-Fulks, Rocheleau, & Nieman, 2015;Humphreys et al, 2018;Rojo, Conesa, Bermudez, & Livianos, 2006), impulsivity (Dawe & Loxton, 2004;Harpin, 2005), common mental disorders (i.e., depression and any anxiety disorder) (Kessler et al, 2006;Küçük et al, 2018;Meier et al, 2015), and borderline personality disorder (BPD) traits (Philipsen et al, 2009;Sansone & Sansone, 2011) were considered as covariates in this study. Specifically, sex (Skogli, Teicher, Andersen, Hovik, & ie, 2013;Striegel-Moore & Bulik, 2007), age (Rohde, Stice, Shaw, Gau, & Ohls, 2017;Sharma & Couture, 2014), ethnicity (Franko, 2007;Morgan, Staff, Hillemeier, Farkas, & Maczuga, 2013), alcohol dependence and drug use (Hudson, Weiss, Pope, McElroy, & Mirin, 1992;Lee, Humphreys, Flory, Liu, & Glass, 2011;…”