Psychosocial Factors, Technology Use, and Disordered Eating in College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The current cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the effects of psychosocial factors and technology use on disordered eating in college students (aged 18 to 23 years) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. An online survey was distributed between February and April 2021. Participants completed questionnaires on eating disorder behaviors and cognitions, depressive symptoms, anxiety, impacts of the pandemic across personal and social domains, social media use, and screen time. Of all participants (N = 202), 40.1% of students reported moderate or greater depressive symptoms and 34.7% endorsed moderate or greater anxiety symptoms. Higher depressive symptoms were associated with increased odds of bulimia nervosa (BN) (p = 0.03) and binge eating disorder (p = 0.02). People with higher COVID-19 infection scores were at increased odds of reporting BN (p = 0.01). Mood disturbances and COVID-19 infection history were associated with increased eating disorder psychopathology in college students during the pandemic. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, xx(x), xx-xx.].

Weight changes during the COVID-19 shutdown in older individuals with type 2 diabetes: the Look AHEAD Study.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of this study were as follows: 1) examine weight changes in older adults (mean age = 76 years) with type 2 diabetes and overweight or obesity during the COVID-19 shutdown; and 2) compare the behavioral and psychosocial effects of the shutdown in those who had large weight losses (>5%), those who had small weight losses (2%-5%), those who remained weight stable (±2%), or those who gained weight (>2%). METHODS: Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) participants (N = 2544) were surveyed during the COVID-19 shutdown (2020), and they self-reported their current weight, reasons for weight change, weight-related behaviors, psychosocial measures, and negative and positive effects of the pandemic on their lives. RESULTS: Comparing self-reported weight during the COVID-19 shutdown with earlier measured weight, Look AHEAD participants lost, on average, 2.2 kg during the COVID-19 shutdown: 47% lost >2%, and only 18% gained >2% (p < 0.0001). Decreases in physical activity and increases in screen time were reported frequently in all weight-change categories. Similarly, there were few differences among the categories on standardized psychosocial measures or self-reported effects of the shutdown on participants' lives. However, when differences were seen, the most negative impact was in those who gained weight. CONCLUSIONS: Although weight loss appeared more common than weight gain during the shutdown, the weight-change groups did not differ on most psychosocial and behavioral variables.

Impact of COVID-19 on life experiences reported by a diverse cohort of older adults with diabetes and obesity.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-reported life experiences in older adults with diabetes and obesity. METHODS: Participants were surveyed in 2020 regarding negative and positive impacts of the pandemic across domains of personal, social, and physical experiences. A cumulative negative risk index (a count of all reported negative impacts of 46 items) and a positive risk index (5 items) were characterized in relation to age, sex, race/ethnicity, BMI, and multimorbidity. RESULTS: Response rate was high (2950/3193, 92%), average age was 76 years, 63% were women, and 39% were from underrepresented populations. Women reported more negative impacts than men (6.8 vs. 5.6; p < 0.001 [of 46 items]) as did persons with a greater multimorbidity index (p < 0.001). Participants reporting African American/Black race reported fewer negative impacts than White participants. Women also reported more positive impacts than men (1.9 vs. 1.6; p < 0.001 [of 5 items]). CONCLUSIONS: Older adults with diabetes and obesity reported more positive impacts of the pandemic than negative impacts, relative to the number of positive (or negative) items presented. Some subgroups experienced greater negative impacts (e.g., for women, a greater multimorbidity index). Efforts to reestablish personal, social, and physical health after the pandemic could target certain groups.

Changes in the Prevalence of Symptoms of Depression, Loneliness, and Insomnia in U.S. Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Look AHEAD Study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate changes in the prevalence of depressive symptoms, loneliness, and insomnia among older adults with type 2 diabetes from 2016 to 2020 and to assess risk factors for these conditions including demographics, multimorbidity, BMI, treatment group, and pre-coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) measure scores. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This was a prospective, observational study of participants from the Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) cohort study. Data were from two assessments before COVID-19 (visit 1: April 2016-June 2018 and visit 2: February 2018-February 2020) and one assessment during COVID-19 (visit 3: July-December 2020). Surveys were administered to assess depressive symptoms, loneliness, and insomnia. RESULTS: The study included 2829 adults (63.2% female, 60.6% White, mean [SD] age 75.6 [6.0] years). The prevalence of mild or greater depressive symptoms did not change significantly between the two pre-pandemic visits (P = 0.88) but increased significantly from pre- to during COVID-19 (19.3% at V2 to 30.4% at V3; P < 0.001). Higher odds of mild or greater depressive symptoms at V3 were associated with being female (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.4 [95% CI 1.1-1.7]), identifying as non-Hispanic White (OR 1.4 [95% CI 1.1-1.7]), having obesity (OR 1.3 [95% CI 1.0-1.5]), and reporting mild or greater depressive symptoms at V1 (OR 4.0 [95% CI 2.9-5.4]), V2 (OR 4.4 [95% CI 3.2-5.9]), or both visits (OR 13.4 [95% CI 9.7-18.4]). The prevalence of loneliness increased from 12.3% at V1 to 22.1% at V3 (P < 0.001), while the prevalence of insomnia remained stable across visits at 31.5-33.3%. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of mild or greater depressive symptoms in older adults with diabetes was more than 1.6 times higher during COVID-19 than before the pandemic.

Changes in mood and health-related quality of life in Look AHEAD 6 years after termination of the lifestyle intervention.

OBJECTIVE: The Action for Health in Diabetes (Look AHEAD) study previously reported that intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) reduced incident depressive symptoms and improved health-related quality of life (HRQOL) over nearly 10 years of intervention compared with a control group (the diabetes support and education group [DSE]) in participants with type 2 diabetes and overweight or obesity. The present study compared incident depressive symptoms and changes in HRQOL in these groups for an additional 6 years following termination of the ILI in September 2012. METHODS: A total of 1,945 ILI participants and 1,900 DSE participants completed at least one of four planned postintervention assessments at which weight, mood (via the Patient Health Questionnaire-9), antidepressant medication use, and HRQOL (via the Medical Outcomes Scale, Short Form-36) were measured. RESULTS: ILI participants and DSE participants lost 3.1 (0.3) and 3.8 (0.3) kg [represented as mean (SE); p = 0.10], respectively, during the 6-year postintervention follow-up. No significant differences were observed between groups during this time in incident mild or greater symptoms of depression, antidepressant medication use, or in changes on the physical component summary or mental component summary scores of the Short Form-36. In both groups, mental component summary scores were higher than physical component summary scores. CONCLUSIONS: Prior participation in the ILI, compared with the DSE group, did not appear to improve subsequent mood or HRQOL during 6 years of postintervention follow-up.