title: Long-term outcome of pediatric eating pathology and predictors for the onset of loss of control over eating following weight-loss treatment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the stability of eating pathology over a 6-year period and predictors for the onset of loss of control (LC) over eating among overweight youngsters having undergone weight-loss treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Structured clinical interviews and self-report questionnaires were administered to a sample of 56 overweight youngsters (M age = 13 years) who were at the start of weight-loss treatment in 2000 and again 6 years later.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean levels of eating concerns, drive for thinness, bulimic symptoms, and body dissatisfaction decreased over the 6-year period. Dietary restraint, weight, and shape concerns were stable over time. Also, in 50% of those reporting objective binge eating at baseline, binge-eating episodes remained stable. Youngsters characterized by symptoms of depression in early adolescence were at a higher risk for developing new episodes of LC 6 years later. Neither concerns about eating, shape, and weight nor dietary restraint independently predicted LC.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Six years after following structured weight-loss treatment, some eating pathology variables still remain stable. Especially youngsters who already report LC at young ages appear to develop a more stable pattern of disordered eating behavior.
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental, Personality and Social Psychology, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium. lien.goossens@ugent.be
authors.forename: Lien
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Goossens
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Braet
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Verbeken
authors.forename: Veerle
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Decaluwé
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bosmans
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001828:Body Image; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002032:Bulimia / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D003863:Depression; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D050177:Overweight / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D015431:Weight Loss