Correction: Multimorbidity and food insecurity in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0288063.].

Meal Frequency and Multi-Morbidity in a Cypriot Population: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Data regarding the effect of specific dietary behaviors, such as meal frequency, on multi-morbidity are scarce. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the effect of meal frequency on multi-morbidity in a Cypriot population. A representative sample of 1255 adults >18 years old was surveyed during 2022-2023. Data regarding sociodemographic characteristics, multi-morbidity, and meal frequency consumption were collected through validated questionnaires. Diseases were listed according to the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision [ICD-10]. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS Statistics v.19.0. Responders who consumed more than three meals and snacks daily had a higher probability of multi-morbidity [OR: 1.505 [95% CI: 1.505-2.069]] compared with those who consumed three or fewer meals and snacks daily. The relation was not statistically significant after adjusting for age and gender and for socioeconomic characteristics. Furthermore, participants who consumed more than three snacks per day had a 1.776 [AOR: 1.616 [95% CI: 1.054-2.476]] higher risk of having multi-morbidity compared with participants who did not consume any snack or consumed one snack per day. The findings suggest that people with multi-morbidity have a higher risk when consuming three or more snacks per day regardless of age, gender, and socioeconomic characteristics.

Multimorbidity and food insecurity in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Food insecurity is one of the main factors affecting multimorbidity. Previous studies have shown that food insecurity may lead to multimorbidity due to person's inability to consume nutritious diet. However, considering that multimorbidity may cause work-related disabilities and an unstable income, others support the possible effect that multimorbidity has on food insecurity. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to examine the relationship between food insecurity and multimorbidity in adults. A systematic literature review of studies was performed using the PubMed, EBSCO and SCOPUS for all articles including adults ≥ 18-year-old with multimorbidity living in developed countries published from August 5th until December 7th 2022. Meta-analysis was performed considering results from the fully adjusted model. The methodological quality was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale adapted for cross-sectional studies. This systematic review was not registered. This research received no specific grant from any funding agency. Four cross-sectional studies involving 45,404 participants were included in order to investigate the possible impact that food insecurity has on multimorbidity. The study findings showed an increased probability of multimorbidity 1.55 (95% CI:1.31-1.79, p<0.001, I2 = 44.1%) among people with food insecurity. Conversely, three of the included studies, involving 81,080 participants concluded that people with multimorbidity, have 2.58 (95% CI: 1.66-3.49, p<0.001, I2 = 89.7%) times higher odds to present food insecurity. This systematic review and meta-analysis provide evidence of a reverse association between food insecurity and multimorbidity. Further cross-sectional studies must be conducted in order to elucidate the association between multimorbidity and food insecurity across age groups and between the two genders.

The association between binge eating disorder and weight management in overweight and obese adults: A systematic literature review.

Aim: Weight loss is shown to improve obesity-related health problems as long as it is maintained for a long term. The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate the association between binge eating disorder and weight management in overweight and obese adults. Methods: A systematic search following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses guidelines was conducted across PubMed, Ebsco and Cochrane Library from inception through December 2020 to identify studies that assessed the association between binge eating disorder and weight management (e.g., weight loss, weight gain and weight loss maintenance) in overweight and obese adults. We included studies that examined adults (≥18 years old) being overweight and obese with and without binge eating behaviour. Two authors independently screened and evaluated studies for methodological quality. Results: Nine articles were selected, including 3685 participants. Three of the included studies were randomised control trials and the remaining were observational studies. The majority of the studies included support that people who have binge eating disorder may have an additional barrier maintaining their weight loss compared to people who do not suffer from binge eating disorder. Conclusion: Our systematic review revealed that binge eating disorder may have a negative association with weight loss maintenance. Further well-conducted prospective cohort studies and randomised clinical trials are required to investigate the possible mechanisms and whether any such mechanisms are modifiable. These will lead us to more efficient strategies targeting weight management.

Social, economic and demographic correlates of overweight and obesity in primary-school children: preliminary data from the Healthy Growth Study.

OBJECTIVE: To record the prevalence of overweight and obesity in urban primary-school children in relation to several socio-economic and demographic factors. DESIGN: Cross-sectional. SETTING/SUBJECTS: A representative sample of 729 schoolchildren (379 male and 350 female), aged 9-13 years, stratified by parental educational level, was examined in the urban region of Athens. Weight and height were measured using standard procedures. The International Obesity Task Force thresholds were used for the definition of overweight and obesity. Several socio-economic and demographic data and the child's 'popularity' score were also recorded with specifically designed standardized questionnaires. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 29·6 % and 11·1 %, respectively. Annual family income of € 12,000-20,000 (OR = 1·58), residence ownership (OR = 1·63) and the grandmother as the child's primary caregiver (OR = 1·38) were significantly associated with higher odds of childhood overweight and obesity. Non-Greek parental nationality (OR = 0·72) and higher 'popularity' scores of children (OR = 0·42) were significantly associated with lower odds of overweight and obesity. The grandmother as the child's primary caregiver and an annual family income of € 12,000-20,000 remained significantly associated with childhood overweight and obesity after adding all significant correlates of childhood overweight and obesity observed at the bivariate level in a multivariate regression model (OR = 1·51 and 1·61, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Among family income, residence ownership, child's primary caregiver, parental nationality and popularity scores that were identified as significant correlates of childhood overweight and obesity at the bivariate level, lower family income and grandmother as the child's primary caregiver were the only factors that remained significantly associated with childhood overweight and obesity at a multivariate level.