ArticleAppetite2022
A cross-sectional examination of reported changes to weight, eating, and activity behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic among United States adults with food addiction.
Article in Appetite, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- Association between ultraprocessed foods consumption, eating disorders, food addiction and body image: a systematic review.BMJ open · 2024Pooled it
- Ultra-Processed Food Consumption and Mental Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.Nutrients · 2022Pooled it
- Prevalence of food addiction and sex-specific correlates in a large sample of Iranian adults.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Ultra-Processed Foods and Mental Health: Where Do Eating Disorders Fit into the Puzzle?Nutrients · 2024Review
- Score of fear of COVID-19 and physical activity level are related to the habitual consumption of dietary supplements.PloS one · 2024Article
- Religion and Pandemic Weight Gain: A Refuge from the Storm?Journal of psychology and theology · 2023Article
- Early life influences on the development of food addiction in college attending young adults.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2023Article
- Adolescents' food intake changes during the COVID-19 pandemic: The moderating role of pre-pandemic susceptibility, COVID-19 related stressors, and the social food context.The European journal of developmental psychology · 2023Article
- Article
- Changes in body weight, health behaviors, and mental health in adults with obesity during the COVID-19 pandemic.Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) · 2022Article
- Commentary: Changes in eating and changes in affect during early Covid confinement.Food quality and preference · 2022Article
- Self-perceived substance and behavioral addictions among Jewish Israeli adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic.Addictive behaviors reports · 2022Article
- Estimation of Behavioral Addiction Prevalence During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Current addiction reports · 2022Review
- Clinical Considerations of Ultra-processed Food Addiction Across Weight Classes: an Eating Disorder Treatment and Care Perspective.Current addiction reports · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Prior studies have demonstrated the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on weight management and lifestyle behaviors, though identification of who may be at greatest risk for negative consequences has not been fully explored. Addictive-like eating behavior, or food addiction, has been associated with an array of problematic eating behaviors, which may suggest heightened susceptibility to poorer outcomes. In this online, cross-sectional study, adults (ages 18-78; M = 42.36, SD = 13.08) living in the United States (n = 288) completed questionnaires assessing food addiction and reported changes to their weight, eating, and physical activity before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals with food addiction gained an average of 12.42 lb (5.63 kg) since March 2020, compared to an average weight gain of 2.14 lb (0.97 kg) for those without food addiction (p < .001). Linear regression analyses controlling for age and body mass index (BMI) showed that food addiction was independently associated with higher weight gain (B = 9.28, t = 4.97, p < .001), greater intake of ultra-processed foods before and during COVID-19 (B = 1.08, t = 5.71, p < .001; B = 1.18, t = 6.42, p < .001, respectively), greater attribution of their overall current eating behaviors to COVID-19 circumstances (B = 23.19, t = 4.62, p < .001), and higher distress about their overall current eating behaviors (B = -22.12, t = -2.50, p = .01). Interaction effects demonstrated that individuals with food addiction who are older may be at particularly high risk for weight gain and distress. The present research suggests that food addiction is a uniquely meaningful phenotype, beyond the effects of BMI, to identify risk for the negative consequences of COVID-19. Individuals with food addiction, particularly those who are older, may benefit from support with weight management and addictive-like eating as the COVID-19 pandemic persists and resolves.
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