An investigation of weight suppression in a population-based sample of female twins.
OBJECTIVE
Weight suppression (WS), maintaining a body weight below one's maximum adult weight, is associated with bingeing, purging, and weight gain in clinical samples.


METHODS
We investigated associations between eating disorder-related variables and WS and additive genetic (A), common (C), and unique (E) environmental contributions to WS in a population-based sample of 1,503 female adult twins.


RESULTS
Modeling results were similar for participants reporting no binge eating (NBE) and those reporting binge eating plus loss of control (BE + LOC): 20-25% of the variance in WS was due to A and 70-75% due to E. Among NBE participants, restraint, drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction, and dieting during child/adulthood were related to WS. Restraint, disinhibition, and dieting during childhood were significantly associated with WS in the BE + LOC subsample.


CONCLUSIONS
Although maintaining lower body weight could be advantageous, interventionists should take care when addressing weight suppression in individuals vulnerable to eating disorder symptomatology.
Mitchell
Karen S
KS
Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University,Richmond, VA 23284-2018, USA.
Neale
Michael C
MC
Bulik
Cynthia M
CM
Lowe
Michael
M
Maes
Hermine H
HH
Kendler
Kenneth S
KS
Mazzeo
Suzanne E
SE
D000328:Adult; D001828:Body Image; D001835:Body Weight / Q000235:genetics*; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012042:Registries