Global Proportion of Disordered Eating in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Importance: The 5-item Sick, Control, One, Fat, Food (SCOFF) questionnaire is the most widely used screening measure for eating disorders. However, no previous systematic review and meta-analysis determined the proportion of disordered eating among children and adolescents. Objective: To establish the proportion among children and adolescents of disordered eating as assessed with the SCOFF tool. Data Sources: Four databases were systematically searched (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library) with date limits from January 1999 to November 2022. Study Selection: Studies were required to meet the following criteria: (1) participants: studies of community samples of children and adolescents aged 6 to 18 years and (2) outcome: disordered eating assessed by the SCOFF questionnaire. The exclusion criteria included (1) studies conducted with young people who had a diagnosis of physical or mental disorders; (2) studies that were published before 1999 because the SCOFF questionnaire was designed in that year; (3) studies in which data were collected during COVID-19 because they could introduce selection bias; (4) studies based on data from the same surveys/studies to avoid duplication; and (5) systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses and qualitative and case studies. Data Extraction and Synthesis: A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) reporting guideline. Main Outcomes and Measures: Proportion of disordered eating among children and adolescents assessed with the SCOFF tool. Results: Thirty-two studies, including 63 181 participants, from 16 countries were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. The overall proportion of children and adolescents with disordered eating was 22.36% (95% CI, 18.84%-26.09%; P < .001; n = 63 181) (I2 = 98.58%). Girls were significantly more likely to report disordered eating (30.03%; 95% CI, 25.61%-34.65%; n = 27 548) than boys (16.98%; 95% CI, 13.46%-20.81%; n = 26 170) (P < .001). Disordered eating became more elevated with increasing age (B, 0.03; 95% CI, 0-0.06; P = .049) and body mass index (B, 0.03; 95% CI, 0.01-0.05; P < .001). Conclusions and Relevance: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, the available evidence from 32 studies comprising large samples from 16 countries showed that 22% of children and adolescents showed disordered eating according to the SCOFF tool. Proportion of disordered eating was further elevated among girls, as well as with increasing age and body mass index. These high figures are concerning from a public health perspective and highlight the need to implement strategies for preventing eating disorders.

Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Health-Related Quality of Life during the COVID-19 Lockdown: A Cross-Sectional Study including Preschoolers, Children, and Adolescents from Brazil and Spain.

Scientific literature has suggested positive associations between the Mediterranean diet (MD) and the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in young populations. However, to our knowledge, this relationship is unexplored during a situation of social isolation (i.e., lockdown). The objective of the current study is to examine the relationship between the MD and HRQoL during the COVID-19 lockdown among preschoolers, children, and adolescents from Brazil and Spain. This cross-sectional study includes a sample of 1099 three- to seventeen-year-old participants (47.6% girls) who were recruited via social networks. The HRQoL was assessed with the EQ-5D-Y. The Quality Index for Children and Teenagers (KIDMED) questionnaire was applied to evaluate the relationship between the MD and HRQoL. The highest prevalence of reported problems was found for worried, sad, or unhappy participants (39.8%). Furthermore, the lowest proportion of HRQoL problems was observed for "mobility" (2.5%). The proportion of high adherence to the MD was 44.3%. Participants with greater MD adherence reported higher HRQoL mean scores when compared with those who did not adhere to the MD (83.7 ± 0.6 vs. 85.6 ± 0.7, respectively; p < 0.05). Adherence to the MD and especially daily fruit intake were related to higher HRQoL during the COVID-19 lockdown among Brazilian and Spanish young people aged three to seventeen years.

Anxiety-Induced Sleep Disturbance and Associated Lifestyle Behaviors According to Sex in Argentine Adolescents.

Purpose: The aim of the current study was twofold: first, to determine the prevalence of anxiety-induced sleep disturbances among Argentine adolescents according to sex, and second, to identify the association between these sleep disturbances and lifestyle behaviors in this population. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with data from the Global School-based Student Health Survey (GSHS) in Argentina (2018). A total of 32,393 adolescents (aged 12-17 years; 53.4% girls) were included in the final analysis. Anxiety-induced sleep disturbances were assessed with the question "During the past 12 months, how often have you been so worried about something that you could not sleep at night?" Results: The prevalence of anxiety-induced sleep disturbances was higher in girls (17.4%) than in boys (7.9%) (p < 0.001). In boys, results indicated that those who used marijuana (cannabis) (odds ratio [OR] = 1.46, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08-1.98), used amphetamine or methamphetamine (OR = 2.19, 95% CI 1.28-3.77), walked or biked to or from school (OR = 1.53, 95% CI 1.19-1.96), and spent 3 h or more in sedentary behaviors (OR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.05-1.74) were more likely to report anxiety-induced sleep disturbances. In girls, those who ate from a fast-food restaurant (OR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.05-1.47), consumed alcoholic beverages (OR = 1.45, 95% CI 1.19-1.75), smoked cigarettes (OR = 2.09, 95%CI 1.05-4.14), consumed any tobacco product (OR = 1.47, 95% CI 1.19-1.82), used amphetamine or methamphetamine (OR = 2.08, 95% CI 1.33-3.26), and those who spent 3 h or more in sedentary behaviors (OR = 1.32, 95% CI 1.11-1.57) were more likely to report frequent anxiety-induced sleep disturbances. Conclusion: In conclusion, considerable sex differences were observed with respect to the prevalence of anxiety-related sleep disturbances and associated lifestyle aspects.