title: The association between internet and television access and disordered eating in a Chinese sample.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  China has historically reported a low prevalence of eating disorders. However, the rapid social and economic development of this country as well as Western ideals widely disseminated by television and the Internet have led to distinct patterns of behavioral choices that could affect eating disorder risk. Thus, the current study explored the relation between disordered eating and media use.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were females from the 2009 wave of the China Health and Nutrition Survey (N = 1,053). Descriptive statistics were obtained and logistic regression models, stratified by age (adolescents ages 12-17 years and adults ages 18-35 years), were used to evaluate the association of media use with disordered eating.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In adolescents, 46.8% had access to the Internet and those with access averaged one hour per day each of Internet and television use. In adults, 41.4% had access to the Internet, and those with access averaged 1 h per day of Internet use and 2 h per day of television use. Internet access was significantly associated with a subjective belief of fatness (OR = 2.8, 95% CI: 1.6, 4.9) and worry over losing control over eating (OR = 4.8, 95% CI: 2.3, 9.8) only in adults.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings help characterize the overall pattern of media use and report of eating disorder symptoms in a large sample of female Chinese adolescents and adults. That Internet access in adults was significantly associated with disordered eating cognitions might suggest that media access negatively influences these domains; however, more granular investigations are warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Christine M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Peat
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Von Holle
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.|Eating Disorders Program, Child and Adolescent Health Service, Department of Health in Western Australia, Perth, Australia.|School of Paediatrics and Child Health, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.|School of Psychology and Speech Pathology, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
authors.forename: Hunna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee.
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Laura M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Thornton
authors.affiliation: Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Bejing, China.
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Shufa
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Susan C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Kleiman
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.|Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.|Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Cynthia M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Bulik
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People; D002648:Child; D002681:China; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000941:ethics*; D008297:Male; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D012307:Risk Factors; D061108:Social Media / Q000941:ethics*; D013690:Television / Q000941:ethics*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: China; disordered eating; media use; risk factors