Estrés, estrategias de afrontamiento y consumo de alimentos no saludables durante la pandemia de COVID-19 en estudiantes universitarios

Los estudiantes universitarios suelen presentar una dieta poco saludable por estar expuestos, entre otros factores, a situaciones estresantes que se han visto exacerbadas por la pandemia del COVID-19. Para enfrentar el estrés se pueden utilizar diferentes estrategias, sin embargo, se desconoce si los estudiantes universitarios han utilizado dichas estrategias y/o cambiado sus hábitos alimentarios como mecanismo para manejar el estrés durante la pandemia. Este estudio evaluó si el estrés generado durante la pandemia de COVID-19 impactó en los hábitos alimentarios de los estudiantes universitarios y en las estrategias de afrontamiento para enfrentar el estrés. La muestra fue no probabilística y estuvo compuesta por 236 estudiantes universitarios de dos instituciones universitarias chilenas. Se aplicó una encuesta en línea que evaluó consumo de alimentos no saludables, estrés, estrategias de afrontamiento, e información sociodemográfica. Los datos se analizaron mediante regresión binomial negativa. El análisis reveló un aumento en el consumo de alimentos poco saludables, especialmente en estudiantes con altos niveles de estrés. Las estrategias utilizadas se agruparon en 'evitación emocional' y 'mantenerse ocupado'. Se evidenció que los estudiantes más jóvenes preferían las estrategias de evitación emocional y había una fuerte asociación entre las estrategias de "mantenerse ocupado" con un menor consumo de alimentos poco saludables. Estos resultados respaldan el desarrollo de estrategias para el manejo del estrés y de esta forma evitar el consumo excesivo de alimentos poco saludables durante períodos estresantes como la pandemia de COVID-19.

College students often have an unhealthy diet due to exposure to, among other factors, stressful situations that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Different strategies can be used to cope with stress; however, it is unknown whether university students have used such strategies and/or changed their dietary habits as a mechanism to manage stress during the pandemic. This study assessed whether the stress generated during the COVID-19 pandemic impacted college students' eating habits and coping strategies to deal with stress. The sample was non-probabilistic and was composed of 236 university students from two Chilean university institutions. An online survey was administered that assessed unhealthy food consumption, stress, coping strategies, and sociodemographic information. Data were analyzed using negative binomial regression. The analysis revealed an increase in the consumption of unhealthy foods, especially in students with high levels of stress. The strategies used were grouped into 'emotional avoidance' and 'keeping busy'. It was evident that younger students preferred emotional avoidance strategies and there was a strong association between 'keeping busy' strategies with lower consumption of unhealthy foods. These results support the development of stress management strategies to avoid excessive consumption of unhealthy foods during stressful periods such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Changes in the clustering of health-related behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic: examining predictors using latent transition analysis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on daily life, affecting both physical and mental health. Changes arising from the pandemic may longitudinally impact health-related behaviors (HRB). As different HRBs co-occur, in this study, we explore how six HRBs - alcohol (past-week and binge-drinking), tobacco, marijuana, benzodiazepine use, and unhealthy food consumption - were grouped and changed over time during the COVID-19 pandemic. A sample of 1038 university students and staff (18 to 73 years old) of two universities completed an online psychometrically adequate survey regarding their recalled HRB (T0, pre-COVID-19 pandemic) and the impact of COVID-19 on their behaviors during July (T1) and November (T2). Latent Transition Analysis (LTA) was used to identify HRB cluster membership and how clusters changed across T0, T1, and T2. Four clusters emerged, but remained mainly stable over time: 'Lower risk' (65.2-80%), 'Smokers and drinkers' (1.5-0.01%), 'Binge-drinkers and marijuana users' (27.6-13.9%), and 'Smokers and binge-drinkers' (5.6-5.8%). Participants who moved from one cluster to another lowered their HRB across time, migrating from the 'Binge-drinkers and marijuana users' cluster to 'Lower risk'. Participants in this cluster were characterized as less affected economically by the COVID-19 pandemic, with lower reported stress levels, anxiety, depression, and loneliness than the other clusters. Our results provide evidence of how HRBs clustered together and transitioned longitudinally during the COVID-19 pandemic. HRB clustering across time offers a valuable piece of information for the tailoring of interventions to improve HRB.

The Perceived Impact of COVID-19 on Comfort Food Consumption over Time: The Mediational Role of Emotional Distress.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on populations at an economic, health, and on an interpersonal level, it is still unclear how it has affected health-risk behaviors, such as comfort food consumption over time. This study longitudinally examines the effect of the perceived impact of COVID-19 on comfort food consumption and whether this effect is mediated by emotional distress. A convenience sample of 1048 students and university staff (academic and non-academic) from two universities completed monthly online surveys during the COVID-19 pandemic across six waves (W; W1 to W6). Participants reported their perceived impact of COVID-19 (economic, interpersonal, and health), comfort food consumption, and emotional distress (DASS-21). Using structural equation models, we found an indirect longitudinal effect of the perceived impact of COVID-19 (W1) on comfort food consumption (W3 to W6) through increased emotional distress (W2). The perceived negative impact of COVID-19 on comfort food consumption was fully mediated by the emotional distress during the first waves (W3 and W4), ending in a partial mediation in the last waves (W5 and W6). These findings contribute to disentangling the mechanisms by which the perceived impact of COVID-19 affects comfort food consumption over time, and highlight the role of emotional distress. Future interventions should address comfort food consumption by focusing on handling emotional distress during a crisis.

COVID-19 Perceived Impact and Psychological Variables as Predictors of Unhealthy Food and Alcohol Consumption Trajectories: The Role of Gender and Living with Children as Moderators.

The present study examines the trajectories of unhealthy food and alcohol consumption over time and considers whether perceived impact of COVID-19 and psychological variables are predictors of these trajectories. We ascertained whether these predictors are different in women vs. men and between women living with vs. without children. Data were collected through online surveys administered to 1038 participants from two universities (staff and students) in Chile, across five waves (July to October 2020). Participants provided information about their past-week unhealthy food and alcohol consumption and mental health. Using latent growth curve modeling analysis, we found that higher perceived health and interpersonal COVID-19 impact, younger age and lower depression symptoms were associated with more rapid increases over time in unhealthy food consumption. On the other hand, higher perceived COVID-19 economic impact and older age were associated with more rapid diachronic decreases in alcohol consumption. Gender and living with or without children, for women only, were moderators of these trajectories. This longitudinal study provides strong evidence identifying the multiple repercussions of COVID-19 and mental health factors on unhealthy food and alcohol consumption. These findings highlight the need for interventions aimed at minimizing the impact of the pandemic on unhealthy food and alcohol consumption over time.