Association of anthropometric status, perceived stress, and personality traits with eating behavior in university students

PurposeWe investigated the association of anthropometric status, perceived stress, and personality traits with eating behavior in university students.MethodsThe participants, 1546 Japanese university students (964 males, 582 females), completed a questionnaire which asked for their current height and weight, ideal height and weight, eating behaviors, perceived stress, and personality traits.ResultsRestrained eating was higher in normal-weight participants compared with underweight participants in both males and females (p<0.001, both males and females). Restrained eating in normal-weight males was significantly lower in normal-weight females (p<0.001). In addition, normal-weight males reported less stress than normal-weight females (anxiety/uncertainty, p=0.037; tiredness/physical responses, p<0.001; autonomic symptoms, p<0.001; depression/feeling, p<0.001) and underweight males (tiredness/physical responses, p=0.018; autonomic symptoms, p=0.001). Moreover, among normal-weight males, neuroticism was significantly lower compared with normal-weight females (p<0.001). In multiple regression analysis, male participants revealed positive association between restrained eating and body mass index (=0.199, p<0.001) or body mass index difference (=-0.170, p=0.001). In contrast, female revealed more significant associations between emotional and external eating and perceived stress or personality traits compared with males.ConclusionsThese results indicate that associations between eating behavior and anthropometric status or psychological factors are different by each eating behavior, which is partly influenced by gender difference.Level of evidenceV, cross-sectional descriptive study.