ABSTRACT
Background: The Yale Food Addiction Scale [YFAS] is the gold standard for assessment of food addiction based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [DSM]. To keep up with the DSM-5 update, the YFAS 2.0 was published in early 2016.
Aims: We conducted the present study to translate, adapt and validate the DSM-5 Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 for use with Arabic speakers.
Methods: Both the final YFAS 2.0-A, developed with a rigorous methodology, and the English YFAS 2.0 were completed by 236 Egyptian medical students fluent in English and Arabic. Three weeks later, the YFAS 2.0A was readministered to all participants.
Results: Cronbach's alpha for the YFAS 2.0A was 0.89. The 3-week intraclass correlation coefficients for diagnosis and symptom scores were 0.95 and 0.93, respectively. Weighted kappa statistics ranged from 0.66 to 0.95 [P < 0.001].
Conclusions: Our findings indicate that the Arabic YFAS 2.0-A is a reliable tool, and that it is valid for use as equivalent to the English YFAS 2.0 in the investigation of food addiction among Arabic-speaking populations.