Validation of the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire in Poland.

INTRODUCTION: Obesity is increasingly diagnosed in pre-school and early primary school children. Eating styles displayed by the youngest children may contribute to the development of overweight and obesity. Their assessment may be extremely important in diagnosing the causes of obesity, but also in planning treatment. AIM OF THE STUDY: In view of the need to introduce a tool for assessing eating behaviours in children in Poland, the aim of the study was to develop the Polish adaptation of the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study group consisted of 151 mothers of children aged 3-10 years (M = 6.77, SD = 2.34), who completed the Polish version of the CEBQ. In order to assess the validity of the questionnaire, a factor analysis was conducted, using the principal components method with the Oblimin rotation and Kaiser normalization. To assess the reliability of the questionnaire, its internal consistency was checked by calculating Cronbach's alpha consistency coefficient. The external validity of the CEBQ was also checked by correlating its scales with those of the Temperament Questionnaire (EAS-C). RESULTS: The principal components analysis extracted an eight-factor scale from the 35 items of the questionnaire in which a total of 60.57% of the common variance was explained. The validity of such an eight-factor solution was confirmed by the Kaiser method. Satisfactorily high values of Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficient were obtained (0.78). Positive correlations were found between emotionality and emotional undereating and overeating, between shyness and fussiness and negative correlations between activity and slowness in eating, sociability and fussiness and slowness in eating and between shyness and enjoyment of food. CONCLUSIONS: The Polish version of the CEBQ is characterized by the acceptable validity and reliability and has a satisfactory criterion accuracy; therefore, it can be used as a psychometric tool to assess eating behaviours in Polish children.

Depression, anxiety and self-esteem in adolescent girls with polycystic ovary syndrome.

OBJECTIVES: Objective of the study was to evaluate the depression, anxiety and perceived stress level in adolescent girls with diagnosed polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), as well as to assess their body and self-esteem and its impact on emotional status. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In 27 adolescent girls with confirmed diagnosis of PCOS (study group) as well as 27 healthy, regularly menstruating, age and BMI matched girls (control group) Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) and Body-Esteem Scale (BES) containing three subscales (sexual attractiveness, weight concern, physical condition) were performed. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between PCOS group and control group in depression and PSS-10 scores, but the anxiety score was significantly higher in control than in PCOS group (9.6 ± 3.0 vs 7.3 ± 3.9, p = 0.02). Moreover, in BES subscales' scores there were no significant differences between the groups, whereas RSES score was significantly higher in PCOS group (25.0 ± 7.1 vs 28.3 ± 4.6, p = 0.04). In PCOS group anxiety score was related to PSS-10 score (r = 0.56, p = 0.005). Moreover, we found that obesity was negatively related to anxiety (rÆ´ = -0.4, p = 0.04), depression (rÆ´ = -0.48, p = 0.02), PSS-10 (rÆ´ = -0.59, p = 0.004) and physical condition scores (rÆ´ = -0.44, p = 0.04). In girls with PCOS the more severe depression the worse weight control (rÆ´ = -0.56, p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that in adolescent girls PCOS is not related to anxiety and depressive symptoms as well as poor self-esteem.

Adult attachment styles and mothers' life satisfaction in relation to eating behaviors in the families with overweight and obese children.

Family plays a significant role in shaping children's eating behaviors. The aim of the study was to assess whether mothers' attachment style, their life satisfaction and their own body weight can be associated with family eating behaviors. The results from 52 dyads (mothers/children) covered by the Metabolic Disease Clinic were analyzed. A targeted sample selection was used, taking into account the weight (overweight/obesity) and age (≥11 years) criteria of the child. The results have shown that the mother's body weight is a significant determinant of her child's body weight. The anxiety-ambivalent attachment style in mothers is a significant predictor of behaviors aimed at regulating and controlling affective states by food. A decrease in the knowledge of nutrition is associated with an increase in the level of anxiety-ambivalent and avoidant style. The avoidant attachment style is significantly associated with the nutrition organisation and control. Dysfunctional eating behaviors predominate among mothers with a lower level of life satisfaction. The lower the level of life satisfaction, the greater the tendency to regulate affective states and family relationships through nutrition, and to manifest improper organisation of nutrition. Mothers with obesity, compared to mothers with overweight and with normal body weight show a higher level of regulating emotions through food, improper organisation of nutrition and lower control in this area. The research results indicateshow significant relationships between insecure attachment styles, life satisfaction, and the mother's weight with eating behaviors unfavorable to health. It is therefore necessary to include family factors in the process of creating effective intervention strategies.

Are Psychosocial Consequences of Obesity and Hyperandrogenism Present in Adolescent Girls with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome?

STUDY OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether body weight status and clinical hyperandrogenism may influence social competencies and psychological gender features in adolescent girls. DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: In 104 adolescent girls, psychological gender inventory (PGI) and social competencies questionnaire (SCQ) (assessing social abilities in three aspects: intimacy (I), social exposure (SE), and assertiveness (AS)) were performed. Subjects were divided into four subgroups: G1-24 nonobese girls without hyperandrogenism, G2-18 obese girls without hyperandrogenism, G3-30 nonobese hyperandrogenic girls, and G4-32 obese girls with hyperandrogenism. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in all parts of SCQ and PGI between the study and control groups. The feminine woman type dominated in all groups; in G3 and G4, masculine woman type appeared more often than in G1 and G2 (13.3% and 12.5% versus 4.0% and 0.0%, resp.). In G4, positive relationship between BMI z-score and SCQ (r = 0.4, p = 0.03) was found. In G1, the relationship was opposite (r = -0.5, p = 0.03). Hirsutism correlated negatively with SCQ (r = -0.5, p = 0.02), I (r = -0.5, p = 0.02), and AS (r = -0.5, p = 0.02) only in G1; in other groups, this relationship was insignificant. In G4, higher testosterone level was associated with lower SCQ (r = -0.5, p = 0.008) and AS (r = -0.5, p = 0.003). In G2, testosterone concentration correlated positively with SCQ (r = 0.6, p = 0.01), SE (r = 0.5, p = 0.02), and AS (r = 0.6, p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: In adolescent girls, neither body weight nor clinical features of hyperandrogenism seem to be the source of evaluated disorders in psychological functioning.