Trajectories of eating behavior during COVID-19 lockdown: Longitudinal analyses of 22,374 adults in the UK

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moritz Herle ◽  
Andrea Smith ◽  
Feifei Bu ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Eating Behavior ◽  
Eating Behaviors ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Stressful Life Events ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Multinomial Regression ◽  
Design Data ◽  
Trajectories Of Change ◽  
The Uk

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the implementation of stay-at-home and lockdown measures. It is currently unknown if the experience of lockdown leads to long term changes in individual’s eating behaviors.Objective: The objectives of this study were: i) to derive longitudinal trajectories of change in eating during UK lockdown, and ii) to identify risk factors associated with eating behavior trajectories. Design: Data from 22,374 UK adults from the UCL COVID-19 Social study (a panel study collecting weekly data during the pandemic) were analyzed from 28th March to 29th May 2020. Latent Class Growth Analysis was used to derive trajectories of change in eating. These were then associated with prior socio-economic, heath-related and psychological factors using multinomial regression models. Results: Analyses suggested five trajectories, with the majority (64%) showing no change in eating. In contrast, one trajectory was marked by persistently eating more, whereas another by persistently eating less. Overall, participants with greater depressive symptoms were more likely to report any change in eating. Loneliness was linked to persistently eating more (OR= 1.07), whereas being single or divorced, as well as stressful life events, were associated with consistently eating less (OR= 1.69). Overall, higher education status was linked to lower odds of changing eating behavior (OR= 0.54-0.77). Secondary exploratory analyses suggest that participants self-reported to have overweight were most common amongst the consistently overeaters, whereas underweight participants persistently ate less. Conclusion: In this study, we found that one third of the sample report changes in quantities eaten throughout the first UK lockdown period. Findings highlight the importance of adjusting public health programs to support eating behaviors in future lockdowns both in this and potential future pandemics. This is particularly important as part of on-going preventive efforts to prevent nutrition-related chronic diseases.

scholarly journals Time-use and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: a panel analysis of 55,204 adults followed across 11 weeks of lockdown in the UK

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feifei Bu ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Hei Wan Mak ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Panel Analysis ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

There is currently major concern about the impact of the global COVID 19 outbreak on mental health. But it remains unclear how individual behaviors could exacerbate or protect against adverse changes in mental health. This study aimed to examine the associations between specific activities (or time use) and mental health and wellbeing amongst people during the COVID 19 pandemic. Data were from the UCL COVID 19 Social Study; a panel study collecting data weekly during the COVID 19 pandemic. The analytical sample consisted of 55,204 adults living in the UK who were followed up for the strict 11 week lockdown period from 21st March to 31st May 2020. Data were analyzed using fixed effects and Arellano Bond models. We found that changes in time spent on a range of activities were associated with changes in mental health and wellbeing. After controlling for bidirectionality, behaviors involving outdoor activities including gardening and exercising predicted subsequent improvements in mental health and wellbeing, while increased time spent on following news about COVID 19 predicted declines in mental health and wellbeing. These results are relevant to the formulation of guidance for people obliged to spend extended periods in isolation during health emergencies, and may help the public to maintain wellbeing during future pandemics.

scholarly journals Eating behavior trajectories in the first ten years of life and their relationship with BMI

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moritz Herle ◽  
Bianca De Stavola ◽  
Christopher Hübel ◽  
Diana L Santos Ferreira ◽  
Mohamed Abdulkadir ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Eating Behavior ◽  
Eating Behaviors ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Longitudinal Impact ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Childhood Weight ◽  
Parents And Children ◽  
Weight Outcomes ◽  
Fussy Eating ◽  
Child Eating Behaviors

AbstractBackgroundChild eating behaviors are highly heterogeneous and their longitudinal impact on childhood weight is unclear. The objective of this study was to characterize eating behaviors during the first ten years of life and evaluate associations with BMI at age 11 years.MethodData were parental reports of eating behaviors from 15 months to age 10 years (n=12,048) and standardized body mass index (zBMI) at age 11 years (n=4884) from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Latent class growth analysis was used to derive latent classes of over-, under-, and fussy eating. Linear regression models for zBMI at 11 years on each set of classes were fitted to assess associations with eating behavior trajectories.ResultsWe identified four classes of overeating; “low stable” (70%), “low transient” (15%), “late increasing” (11%), and “early increasing” (6%). The “early increasing” class was associated with higher zBMI (boys: β=0.83, 95%CI:0.65, 1.02; girls: β=1.1; 0.92, 1.28) compared to “low stable”. Six classes were found for undereating; “low stable” (25%), “low transient” (37%), “low decreasing” (21%), “high transient” (11%), “high decreasing” (4%), and “high stable” (2%). The latter was associated with lower zBMI (boys: β=-0.79; -1.15, - 0.42; girls: β=-0.76; -1.06, -0.45). Six classes were found for fussy eating; “low stable” (23%), “low transient” (15%), “low increasing” (28%), “high decreasing” (14%), “low increasing” (13%), “high stable” (8%). The “high stable” class was associated with lower zBMI (boys: β =-0.49; -0.68 -0.30; girls: β =-0.35; -0.52, -0.18).ConclusionsEarly increasing overeating during childhood is associated with higher zBMI at age 11. High persistent levels of undereating and fussy eating are associated with lower zBMI. Longitudinal trajectories of eating behaviors may help identify children potentially at risk of adverse weight outcomes.

scholarly journals Are we all in this together? Longitudinal assessment of cumulative adversities by socioeconomic position in the first 3 weeks of lockdown in the UK

2020 ◽  
pp. jech-2020-214475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liam Wright ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Events ◽  
Socioeconomic Position ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Longitudinal Assessment ◽  
Adverse Experiences ◽  
University College London ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Access To Food ◽  
Over Time

BackgroundDespite media claims that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is uniting societies and countries in shared experience, there has been concern that the pandemic is in fact exposing and widening existing inequalities within societies. Data have shown these differences for cases and fatalities, but data on other types of adversities are lacking. Therefore, this study explored the changing patterns of adversity relating to the COVID-19 pandemic by socioeconomic position (SEP) during the early weeks of lockdown in the UK.MethodsData were from 12 527 UK adults in the University College London COVID-19 Social Study (a panel study that involves online weekly data collection from participants during the COVID-19 pandemic). We analysed data collected from 25 March to 14 April 2020. The sample was well-stratified and weighted to population proportions of gender, age, ethnicity, education and country of living. We used Poisson and logit models to assess 10 different types of adverse experiences depending on an index of SEP over time.ResultsThere was a clear gradient across the number of adverse events experienced each week by SEP. This was most clearly seen for adversities relating to finances (including loss of employment and cut in income) and basic needs (including access to food and medications) but less for experiences directly relating to the virus. Inequalities were maintained with no reductions in discrepancies between socioeconomic groups over time.ConclusionsThere were clear inequalities in adverse experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic in the early weeks of lockdown in the UK. Results suggest that measures taken to try to reduce such adverse events did not go far enough in tackling inequality.

scholarly journals Loneliness during lockdown: trajectories and predictors during the COVID-19 pandemic in 35,712 adults in the UK

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feifei Bu ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Growth Trajectories ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Growth Mixture ◽  
Growth Mixture Modelling ◽  
The Uk

AbstractThere are increasing worries that lockdowns and “stay-at-home” orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to a rise in loneliness, which is recognised as a major public health concern. But profiles of loneliness during the pandemic and risk factors remain unclear.Data from 35,712 UK adults in the UCL COVID-19 Social Study (a panel study collecting data weekly during the pandemic) were analysed from 21/03/2020-03/05/2020. The sample was well-stratified and weighted to population proportions of gender, age, ethnicity, education and geographical location. Growth mixture modelling was used to identify the latent classes of loneliness growth trajectories and their predictors.Analyses revealed four classes, with the baseline loneliness level ranging from low to high. In the first six weeks of lockdown, loneliness levels increased in the highest loneliness group, decreased in the lowest loneliness group, and stayed relatively constant in the middle two groups. Younger adults (OR = 2.17–6.81), women (OR = 1.59), people with low income (OR = 1.3), the economically inactive (OR = 1.3–2.04) and people with mental health conditions (OR = 5.32) were more likely to be in highest loneliness class relative to the lowest. Further, living with others or in a rural area, and having more close friends or greater social support were protective.Perceived levels of loneliness in the first few weeks of lockdown during COVID-19 were relatively stable in the UK, but for many people these levels were high with no signs of improvement. Results suggest that more efforts are needed to address loneliness, especially amongst young people.

scholarly journals Emotional and behavioural pathways to adolescent substance use and antisocial behaviour: results from the UK Millennium Cohort Study_PREPRINT

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
João Picoito ◽  
Constança Santos ◽  
Carla Nunes
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Antisocial Behaviour ◽  
Risk Behaviour ◽  
Adolescent Substance Use ◽  
Multinomial Regression ◽  
Adolescent Substance ◽  
Behavioural Symptoms ◽  
Growth Mixture Modelling ◽  
The Uk

AbstractThis study examines the emotional and behavioural pathways to adolescent substance use and antisocial behaviour. Using a sample of 17,223 participants from the UK Millennium Cohort Study, we applied parallel-process growth mixture modelling on emotional and behavioural symptoms in those aged 3 to 14 and employed latent class analysis to identify patterns of substance use and antisocial behaviours at age 14. We then performed a multinomial regression analysis to explore the association between emotional and behavioural trajectories and patterns of adolescent substance use and antisocial behaviours, controlling for sociodemographic, family and maternal factors. We found five trajectories of emotional and behavioural symptoms and four classes of adolescence substance use and antisocial behaviour. Children and adolescents in the ‘high externalising and internalising’ and ‘moderate externalising’ trajectories were more likely to belong to any problematic behaviour class, especially the ‘poly-substance use and antisocial behaviours’ class. Inclusion in the ‘moderate externalising and internalising (childhood limited)’ class was associated with higher odds of belonging to the ‘alcohol and tobacco’ class. These associations remained significant after controlling for important sociodemographic and contextual factors, such as maternal substance use, poverty, and parental status. Interventions on adolescent health promotion and risk behaviour prevention need to address the clustering of substance use and antisocial behaviour as well as the significant influence of early and chronic internalising and externalising symptoms on the aetiology of these behaviours.

scholarly journals Dyadic Profiles of Health Behaviors Among Korean Baby Boomer Couples

2020 ◽  
pp. 073346482093200
Author(s):  
Bon Kim ◽  
Kyungmin Kim ◽  
Jeffrey A. Burr ◽  
Joohyun Kim ◽  
Gyounghae Han
Keyword(s):  
Health Behaviors ◽  
Marital Quality ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Baby Boomer ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Multinomial Regression ◽  
Health Promoting Behaviors ◽  
Health Promoting ◽  
Behavior Profiles ◽  
Barriers To Health

Objectives: To address the issue of whether health behaviors are concordant within couples, this study identified dyadic profiles of health behaviors among Korean baby boomer couples ( born 1955–1963). Methods: We analyzed a sample of 1,092 middle-aged couples from the Korean Baby Boomer Panel Study (2014). Latent class analysis and multinomial regression models were conducted to describe underlying health behavior profiles. Results: Four dyadic profiles of health behaviors emerged: (a) concordant—high health-promoting (26%), (b) moderate concordant—compensating (21%), (c) moderate concordant—low engaging (22%), and (d) less concordant—high health-promoting (31%). In addition, couples with higher levels of education, worse health, or better marital quality were more likely to belong to two high health-promoting profiles. Discussion: Encouraging husbands to engage in fewer health-compromising behaviors and acknowledging barriers to health-promoting behaviors for both spouses may contribute to healthier lifestyles among Korean couples.

scholarly journals Do predictors of adherence to pandemic guidelines change over time? A panel study of 21,000 UK adults during the COVID-19 pandemic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liam Wright ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
Younger Age ◽  
Social Motivations ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Predictors Of Adherence

AbstractIn the absence of a vaccine, governments have focused on behaviour change (e.g. social distancing and enhanced hygiene procedures) to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Existing research on the predictors of compliance with pandemic measures has often produced discrepant results. One explanation for this may be that the determinants of compliance are context specific. Understanding whether this is the case is important for designing public health messaging and for evaluating the generalisability of existing research. We used data from the UCL COVID-19 Social Study; a large weekly panel of UK adults from first five months of lockdown in the UK (n = 21,000). We tested whether the extent to which demographic, socio-economic position, personality traits, pro-social motivations, and the living environment predict compliance changed across the pandemic. Low compliance was strongly related to younger age and also to risk attitudes, empathic concern, and high income, among other factors. But the size of some of these associations was larger in later months when less stringent lockdown and household mixing measures were in place, suggesting context-specific effects. The results also showed that compliance fell faster across some groups, suggesting the importance that public health communications adopt a plurality of messages to maximize broad adherence.

scholarly journals Trajectories of depression and anxiety during enforced isolation due to COVID-19: longitudinal analyses of 59,318 adults in the UK with and without diagnosed mental illness

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daisy Fancourt ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Feifei Bu
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Depression And Anxiety ◽  
Growth Curve Modelling ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

AbstractBackgroundThere is currently major concern about the impact of the global COVID-19 outbreak on mental health.A number of studies suggest that mental health deteriorated in many countries prior to enforced isolation (“lockdown”), but it remains unknown how mental health has changed during lockdown.AimsThis study explored trajectories of anxiety and depression over the first two months of lockdown using data from the UK, and compared the experiences of individuals with and without diagnosed mental illness.MethodsData from 53,328 adults in the UCL COVID-19 Social Study (a well-stratified panel study weighted to population proportions collecting data weekly during the Covid-19 pandemic) were analysed from 21/03/2020-10/05/2020. Growth curve modelling was fitted accounting for socio-demographic and health covariates.Results24.4% of the sample had scores indicating moderate-severe anxiety, and 31.4% indicating moderate-severe depressive symptoms. Over the first two months of lockdown, there was only a slight decrease in anxiety levels amongst participants as a whole and a very small decrease in depression levels between weeks 3-6 that then increased again in weeks 7-8. Adults with pre-existing diagnoses of mental health conditions had higher levels of anxiety and depression but there was no evidence of widening inequalities in mental health experiences compared to people without existing mental illness.ConclusionsResults suggest there has been little improvement in depression and only slight improvements in anxiety since lockdown commenced in the UK. These findings suggest greater efforts need to be made to help individuals manage their mental health during the pandemic.

scholarly journals Time use and mental health in UK adults during an 11-week COVID-19 lockdown: a panel analysis

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Feifei Bu ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Hei Wan Mak ◽  
Daisy Fancourt
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

Background There is currently major concern about the impact of the global COVID-19 outbreak on mental health. But it remains unclear how individual behaviours could exacerbate or protect against adverse changes in mental health. Aims To examine the associations between specific activities (or time use) and mental health and well-being among people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method Data were from the UCL COVID-19 Social Study, a panel study collecting data weekly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The analytical sample consisted of 55 204 adults living in the UK who were followed up for the 11-week strict lockdown period from 21 March to 31 May 2020. Data were analysed using fixed-effects and Arellano–Bond models. Results Changes in time spent on a range of activities were associated with changes in mental health and well-being. After controlling for bidirectionality, behaviours involving outdoor activities such as gardening and exercising predicted subsequent improvements in mental health and well-being, whereas increased time spent following news about COVID-19 predicted declines in mental health and well-being. Conclusions These results are relevant to the formulation of guidance for people obliged to spend extended periods in isolation during health emergencies and may help the public to maintain well-being during future lockdowns and pandemics.

Eating Behavior of Brazilian College Students: Influences of Lifestyle, Negative Affectivity, and Personal Characteristics

2020 ◽  
pp. 003151252098308
Author(s):  
Bianca G. Martins ◽  
Wanderson R. da Silva ◽  
João Marôco ◽  
Juliana A. D. B. Campos
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Eating Behavior ◽  
Emotional Eating ◽  
Eating Behaviors ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Negative Affectivity ◽  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
Second Order ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

In this study we proposed to estimate the impact of lifestyle, negative affectivity, and college students’ personal characteristics on eating behavior. We aimed to verify that negative affectivity moderates the relationship between lifestyle and eating behavior. We assessed eating behaviors of cognitive restraint (CR), uncontrolled eating (UE), and emotional eating (EE)) with the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire-18. We assessed lifestyle with the Individual Lifestyle Profile, and we assessed negative affectivity with the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21. We constructed and tested (at p < .05) a hypothetical causal structural model that considered global (second-order) and specific (first-order) lifestyle components, negative affectivity and sample characteristics for each eating behavior dimension. Participants were 1,109 college students ( M age = 20.9, SD = 2.7 years; 65.7% females). We found significant impacts of lifestyle second-order components on negative affectivity (β = −0.57–0.19; p < 0.001–0.01) in all models. Physical and psychological lifestyle components impacted directly only on CR (β=−0.32–0.81; p < 0.001). Negative affectivity impacted UE and EE (β = 0.23–0.30; p < 0.001). For global models, we found no mediation pathways between lifestyle and CR or UE. For specific models, negative affectivity was a mediator between stress management and UE (β=−0.07; p < 0.001). Negative affectivity also mediated the relationship between thoughts of dropping an undergraduate course and UE and EE (β = 0.06–0.08; p < 0.001). Participant sex and weight impacted all eating behavior dimensions (β = 0.08–0.34; p < 0.001–0.01). Age was significant for UE and EE (β=−0,14– −0.09; p < 0.001–0.01). Economic stratum influenced only CR (β = 0.08; p = 0.01). In sum, participants’ lifestyle, negative emotions and personal characteristics were all relevant for eating behavior assessment.

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