Association of emotional factors with dietary behaviors and body weight status among college students: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: Transitions of college life often lead to changes in eating habits, psychological well-being, and body weight, which can have an impact on young adults' nutritional status and general health. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between eating attitudes, emotional appetite, and Body Mass Index (BMI) among college students. Methods: A cross-sectional study including 356 college students aged 15 to 30 years was carried out at SRM Institute of Science and Technology in Chennai, India. Eating attitudes were measured with the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), and emotional appetite was measured with the Emotional Appetite Questionnaire (EMAQ). The Body Mass Index (BMI) was computed using basic anthropometric measurements. Statistical analyses were used to examine the relationships between eating habits, emotional appetite, and BMI. Results: The majority of individuals (64.9%) had healthy eating attitudes, while 32.3% had poor eating behaviors. A statistically significant relationship was found between eating attitudes and BMI (p=0.034), with normal-weight participants more likely to report good eating habits. Emotional appetite patterns showed that negative emotions were often connected with lower appetite and positive emotions with increased food intake. However, there was no statistically significant relationship between emotional appetite and BMI. Conclusions: Healthy eating attitudes were substantially connected with normal BMI among college students, whereas emotional appetite had no effect on BMI despite impacting eating habits. These findings emphasize the need to combine nutrition education and mental health measures to encourage good eating habits and improve college students' overall well-being.