Jul 2026· European Journal of Pediatrics· Vol 185· 0 citations· 40 references
Medicine
TL;DR
Emotional eating was selectively associated with specific sleep-related problems, particularly bedtime difficulties and snoring, in a large sample of Spanish adolescents, with anger and anxiety showing the strongest associations.
BACKGROUND
Emotional eating behaviors, defined as the tendency to eat in response to negative emotions, increase in frequency throughout adolescence and have been linked to negative health outcomes, including higher body weight and unhealthier dietary patterns. Although cross-sectional studies have established relationships between emotional eating and sleep disturbances in adolescents, the directionality and underlying mechanisms of this association remain unclear. This study therefore examined within-person associations between emotional eating and sleep disturbances across adolescence.
METHODS
A sample of 3216 adolescents from the Generation R Study, a prospective population-based cohort in the Netherlands, was examined across three time points (ages 10, 14, and 18). Associations were modelled using a Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Model (RI-CLPM). Multi-group RI-CLPMs were estimated to explore differences in cross-lagged pathways by sex, anxiety problems, affective problems, national origin, maternal education, and weight status.
RESULTS
No intra-individual cross-lagged associations were found in the overall sample. However, a small within-person concurrent association at age 18 was observed, suggesting co-occurrence of emotional eating and sleep disturbances in late adolescence. Multi-group analyses showed that emotional eating at age 14 predicted increased sleep disturbances at age 18 among adolescents of European origin and those at low risk of overweight at age 10.
CONCLUSION
While no consistent intra-individual directional effects were found across adolescence, findings suggest that emotional eating may contribute to later sleep disturbances in specific subgroups. Further research with extended follow-up into adulthood is warranted.
V. van Garling, H. Harris, P. W. Jansen· Eating Behaviors· 0 citations
Adequate sleep is essential for maintaining health; however, insufficient and irregular sleep patterns remain a public health concern. Lifestyle behaviors, including dietary habits, have been associated with sleep, but limited evidence exists regarding the role of cognitive aspects of eating, particularly in relation to sleep behaviors. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the associations of sociodemographic characteristics, social jetlag (SJL), cognitive aspects of eating, and dietary behaviors with weekday sleep duration among young Japanese adults.
This cross-sectional study analyzed data from 1,844 non-student adults aged 18–39 years who participated in a nationwide online survey. Weekday sleep duration was categorized into three groups: < 6 h, 6–9 h, and ≥ 9 h. SJL was calculated as the difference between mid-sleep times on weekdays and weekends. Cognitive aspects of eating were assessed using multiple components, including perceived values regarding eating breakfast (12 items summarized into three factors: perceived benefits, environmental and social facilitators, and perceived barriers), self-reported efforts to maintain a healthy diet, and attitudes toward specific dietary practices (e.g., eating breakfast, balanced meals, regular meal timing, avoiding late-night eating, and eating with family or friends). Multinomial logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine factors associated with sleep duration.
Short sleep duration (< 6 h) was associated with greater SJL (OR = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.11–1.40), lower concern for avoiding late-night eating (OR = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.80–0.99). In contrast, long sleep duration (≥ 9 h) was associated with smaller SJL (OR = 0.68, 95% CI: 0.56–0.83), lower perceived benefits of eating breakfast (OR = 0.80, 95% CI: 0.68–0.93), and higher odds of rarely eating breakfast (OR = 1.65, 95% CI: 1.03–2.66).
Sleep duration was differentially associated with SJL, cognitive aspects of eating, and dietary behaviors among young Japanese adults. These findings highlight the importance of considering cognitive aspects of eating, in addition to dietary behaviors, when examining sleep-related health issues among young Japanese adults.
F. Hayashi, Y. Takemi· BMC Public Health· 0 citations
Abstarct Purpose Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a condition characterised by metabolic dysfunction, with an increasing prevalence among young and middle‑aged adults who are overweight or obese. Emotional eating, a common maladaptive eating behaviour, is frequently observed in overweight and obese populations. Although previous studies have indicated that social support is closely related to eating behaviours, its specific role in patients with MAFLD remains to be further elucidated. Patients and Methods A cross‑sectional study was conducted in Shihezi, Xinjiang, China, in November 2025, involving 457 young and middle‑aged overweight and obese patients with MAFLD. The Perceived Social Support Scale, Weight Self‑Stigma Questionnaire, Self‑Rating Depression Scale, and the emotional eating subscale of the Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire were administered. The bias‑corrected bootstrap method (5,000 resamples, 95% confidence interval) was used to test the statistical significance of each pathway in the serial mediation model. Results Using unstandardized coefficients, social support was negatively associated with emotional eating through a direct pathway (Effect = −0.112, 95% CI: −0.180 to −0.044). Bootstrap analysis showed that weight self-stigma and depression were independently and serially involved in the indirect association between social support and emotional eating. The indirect effect through weight self-stigma was −0.054 (95% CI: −0.101 to −0.013), accounting for 14.96% of the total effect. The indirect effect through depression was −0.105 (95% CI: −0.153 to −0.064), accounting for 29.09%. The serial indirect effect through weight self-stigma and depression was −0.091 (95% CI: −0.123 to −0.063), accounting for 25.21%. Conclusion Weight self‑stigma and depression play a serial mediating role in the relationship between social support and emotional eating among young and middle‑aged overweight and obese patients with MAFLD. The potential clinical implications of these findings warrant further investigation.
Runjia Zhang, Weilong Wang, Jian-Yun Lu et al.· Journal of Multidisciplinary...· 0 citations
Sleep disturbances are common among older adults and are often closely associated with anxiety symptoms, which together can substantially compromise physical and mental health.A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from the 2017/2018 wave of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). The study included 6,106 Chinese older adults (aged ≥65 years) living in empty-nest households. Physical exercise was measured based on self-reported regular engagement in exercise, and social participation was defined as involvement in organized social activities (e.g., community or group-based events). Associations between sleep quality and duration and anxiety were estimated using multivariable logistic regression, and mediation effects of physical exercise and social participation were tested using bootstrap resampling.Among the 6,106 participants, 593 (9.7%) reported anxiety symptoms. Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that poor sleep quality was significantly associated with a higher risk of anxiety (OR = 3.23, 95% CI: 2.62–4.01, P < 0.001). Short sleep duration was also an independent risk factor for anxiety (OR = 1.34, 95% CI: 1.04–1.74, P = 0.025), whereas long sleep duration showed no significant association. Subgroup analyses stratified by sex, marital status, and economic status consistently revealed significant associations between sleep (both quality and duration) and anxiety, with no statistically significant interactions observed. Mediation analyses demonstrated that physical exercise significantly mediated the relationships of both sleep quality and long sleep duration with anxiety (all P < 0.01, with bootstrap confidence intervals excluding zero). Similarly, social participation significantly mediated the relationships of both short and long sleep duration with anxiety (all P < 0.01, with bootstrap confidence intervals excluding zero).In Chinese empty-nest older adults, both poor sleep quality and short sleep duration are independent risk factors for anxiety symptoms, with sleep quality exerting a stronger influence. Physical exercise partially mediated the associations between sleep quality and anxiety and between long sleep duration and anxiety, whereas social participation mediated the association between sleep duration (short and long) and anxiety. Improving sleep quality and ensuring adequate sleep duration may help reduce anxiety risk, and interventions promoting physical exercise and social participation could enhance these protective effects.
Yiming Ma, Quan Zhou, Jiaran Jiang et al.· bioRxiv· 0 citations
Sleep disturbances are frequent in childhood and have been associated with emotional vulnerability and modifiable lifestyle behaviours. The relative and combined contributions of child anxiety, parental anxiety, and unstructured daily routines to paediatric sleep disturbances remain incompletely characterized. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 306 otherwise healthy children aged 3–14 years. Parents completed validated questionnaires assessing sleep disturbances, child anxiety, parental anxiety, and daily lifestyle habits, including evening screen exposure. Multivariable linear regression, mediation, and cluster analyses were performed to identify correlates of sleep disturbances and distinct profiles. Clinically significant sleep disturbances were identified in 39.2% of participants. Higher child trait anxiety was consistently associated with greater sleep disturbance severity (all P < .001). Evening screen exposure was independently associated with higher sleep disturbance scores (P < .05). Parental trait anxiety not directly associated with sleep disturbances both directly and indirectly through child trait anxiety, which mediated approximately 30% of the association (P < .001). Cluster analysis identified three distinct profiles, including two groups with comparable sleep disturbance severity but contrasting characteristics: one marked by high emotional vulnerability and one by predominant lifestyle dysregulation. Conclusion: Sleep disturbances are strongly associated with trait anxiety and independently related to evening screen exposure, while parental anxiety appears to exert its effect both directly and, in part, indirectly through child anxiety. Similar sleep complaints may reflect different underlying emotional and lifestyle mechanisms. A multidimensional assessment integrating anxiety screening and evaluation of evening habits may improve early identification of at-risk children and support targeted preventive strategies within routine paediatric care. What is Known: • Paediatric sleep disturbances are common and linked to psychological, family and lifestyle risk factors. • Most studies examine these factors in isolation rather than within an integrated framework. What is New: • Child trait anxiety was the strongest correlate of sleep disturbances and partially mediated the effect of parental anxiety; evening screen exposure and later bedtime contributed independently. • Children with similar sleep disturbance severity showed distinct emotional or lifestyle profiles, supporting multidimensional assessment.
A. Suppiej, Elia Sigolotto, C. Malaventura· European Journal of Pediatri...· 0 citations
Background/Objectives: Emotional stability is a personality trait associated with emotion regulation and adaptation to stress. Low emotional stability has been associated with anxiety, depressive symptoms, and emotional eating, but the mechanisms underlying these relationships among medical students remain unclear. This study examined the association between emotional stability and emotional eating and explored indirect statistical associations involving anxiety and depressive symptoms using exploratory parallel and serial path analyses. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among 291 medical students. Emotional stability was assessed using the DECAS Personality Inventory, emotional eating using the DEBQ (Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire), anxiety symptoms using the GAD-7 (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7), and depressive symptoms using the PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9). Spearman correlations and exploratory parallel and serial path analyses were performed using the PROCESS macro for SPSS Statistical Calculator v26 with 5000 bootstrap samples. Results: Emotional stability was negatively correlated with anxiety (ρ = −0.546; p < 0.001), depressive symptoms (ρ = −0.603; p < 0.001), and emotional eating (ρ = −0.383; p < 0.001). Anxiety (ρ = 0.380; p < 0.001) and depressive symptoms (ρ = 0.454; p < 0.001) were positively correlated with emotional eating. Only depressive symptoms showed a significant indirect statistical association linking emotional stability and emotional eating (B = −0.0139; 95% bootstrap CI: −0.0223 to −0.0068). In the serial path analysis, only the model specifying anxiety as the first intermediate variable showed a significant indirect effect (B = −0.0065; 95% bootstrap CI: −0.0109 to −0.0032). Conclusions: Depressive symptoms showed the strongest indirect association linking emotional stability and emotional eating in medical students. These findings should be interpreted as being consistent with the proposed statistical model and do not establish temporal or causal relationships.
L. Grebenișan, B. Abalasei, A. Sima-Comaniciu et al.· Nutrients· 0 citations
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