Night eating syndrome and food addiction in Turkish population

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of food addiction (FA) and night eating syndrome (NES) and to investigate any correlation between them in Turkish population. Materials and Methods: Subjects registered with family medicine centers were randomly invited to participate in the study (415 volunteers). Participants were evaluated with a socio-demographic data form, the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) and the Night Eating Questionnaire (NEQ). Results: A total of 295 subjects, including 160 females and 135 males, were evaluated in our study. The mean age of the participants was 33.78±10.72 and the mean BMI was 25.11±4.63. 7.8% of the subjects had FA according to the YFAS, and 13.2% had NES according to the NEQ. The prevalence of a coexistence of NES and FA was 2%. Using Pearson correlation analysis, a positive correlation was established between BMI and NEQ (r=0.14, p<0.01) and a positive correlation was found between total scores from the NEQ and the YFAS (r=0.14, p<0.01). With multiple linear regression analysis, it was demonstrated that 18.4% of total NEQ scores could be explained by eight YFAS symptom scores (p<0.001). Conclusion: It should be kept in mind that normal-weight, overweight or obese individuals may have NES or FA or both. Therefore, it could be useful to assess these problematic eating behaviors in individuals presented to family medicine outpatient clinics and to refer those with these problematic eating behaviors to relevant treatment centers.