title: Emotion regulation, emotional eating and the energy-rich dietary pattern. A population-based study in Chinese adolescents.
abstract: Research investigating the influence of emotion regulation (ER) strategies on emotional eating and diet among Chinese adolescents is scarce. The aim of this study was to test associations between two ER strategies (suppression/cognitive reappraisal), emotional eating, and an energy-rich dietary pattern. A total of 4316 adolescents from 10 high schools were surveyed. Dietary patterns were derived using factor analysis. Bivariate correlations were analyzed to examine associations between ER strategies, emotional eating behavior and an energy-rich dietary pattern, by gender. The mediating effect of emotional eating in the relationship between ER and energy-rich food consumption by gender was estimated using structural equation modeling. A higher level of suppression, but no lack of cognitive reappraisal, was associated with emotional eating in boys and girls. A higher level of suppression and lack of cognitive reappraisal were associated with a greater intake of energy-rich foods in girls only. Emotional eating mediated the relationship between a higher level of suppression and a greater intake of energy-rich food in girls. This study revealed significant associations between two ER strategies and an energy-rich dietary pattern in girls, and provided evidence that higher levels of suppression may put girls at risk for emotional eating, potentially affecting the energy-rich dietary pattern.
authors.affiliation: Department of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81 Mei Shan Road, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China; Department of Child and Adolescent Health, Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu, China.
authors.forename: Qingyun
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Department of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81 Mei Shan Road, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China. Electronic address: taofangbiao@126.com.
authors.forename: Fangbiao
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.affiliation: Department of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81 Mei Shan Road, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China.
authors.forename: Fangli
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.affiliation: Department of the Elementary and Middle School Students Healthcare, Education Bureau, Xuzhou, Jiangsu, China.
authors.forename: Zhaocheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81 Mei Shan Road, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China.
authors.forename: Ling-Ling
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Ren
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D044466:Asian People; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004644:Emotions; D002149:Energy Intake; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D012574:Schools; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Adolescents; Cognitive reappraisal; Dietary pattern; Emotion regulation; Emotional eating; Suppression