The Features of Cognitive Eating Behavior among Japanese Farmers and Their Association with Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Levels / 日本農村医学会雑誌

ABSTRACT

Background: Behavior modification approaches involve various strategies of cognitive therapy. There is increasing interest in adopting such approaches in order to achieve more modest and sustainable weight control and also prevent the prevalence of hypercholesterolemia.<BR>Objective: To better understand the risk factors associated with the development of hypercholesterolemia, we examined the relationship between changes in eating behavior based on cognitive therapy and serum low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC) levels. In addition, the outlook for such individuals, lifestyle improvement was also examined based on a behavior modification approach.<BR>Research methods: Data were obtained during regular medical checkups in 1999 from subjects. They consistied of 611 males and females ranging from 40 to 65 years of age in Kyushu, Japan. A co-variance analysis was performed to examine the independent relationship between eating behavior and the LDL-C levels.<BR>Results: “Overeating” when not related to cognitive restraint showed a considerably strong correlation with the LDL-C levels among male subjects. In contrast, both “unplanned eating” and “pessimistic thoughts concerning dieting” were strongly associated with the LDL-C levels among female subjects. Regarding lifestyle improvement, the need to lose weight and exercise was accepted by 40-50% of the subjects.<BR>Discussion: Male subjects need to better recognize their overeating behavior for example, they need to understand the influence of advertising for many high-calorie fast foods. In addition, they should limit their intake of high-calorie foods and try to only eat at regular meal times. Female subjects should prepare only as much food as will be eaten at one meal. Moreover, female subjects also need to modify their pessimistic thoughts concerning dieting for example, if they become fat, they often do not try to improve their eating habits because they assume that getting fat is unavoidable because of their innate constitution. These features of cognitive eating behavior provide both barriers and opportunities for changing LDL-C levels. Accordingly, future research needs to focus on the relationship between such cognitive behavior and the LDL-C levels.