Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41320770›Full record

ArticleBioPsychoSocial medicine2025

Communicative and critical health literacy and eating behaviors in Japanese adults predominantly over 40: the modifying role of body image distortion.

Noriaki Kurita, Takako Maeshibu, Sayaka Shimizu, Tetsuro Aita, Takafumi Wakita, Hiroe Kikuchi

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Article in BioPsychoSocial medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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1citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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1 citing paper in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Noriaki KuritaDepartment of Clinical Epidemiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, 1 Hikarigaoka, Fukushima City, Fukushima, 960-1295, Japan. kuritanoriaki@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4127-7500
Takako MaeshibuGraduate School of Psychology, Kansai University, Suita City, Osaka, Japan.
Sayaka ShimizuDepartment of Clinical Epidemiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, 1 Hikarigaoka, Fukushima City, Fukushima, 960-1295, Japan.
Tetsuro AitaDepartment of Clinical Epidemiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, 1 Hikarigaoka, Fukushima City, Fukushima, 960-1295, Japan.
Takafumi WakitaDepartment of Sociology, Kansai University, Suita City, Osaka, Japan.
Hiroe KikuchiDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Japan Institute for Health Security, Shinjuku-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.

Funding

Japan Society for the Promotion of Science JP22H03317
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDisordered eating behaviors, emotional eating (EE), uncontrolled eating (UE), and cognitive restraint (CR) contribute to weight dysregulation and remain public health concerns in Japan. Body image distortion (BID), or the misperception of one's body size, has been linked to both being underweight and overweight. While health literacy (HL) and BID are individually associated with eating behaviors, the influence of higher-order HL domains-communicative and critical literacy-and their interactions with BID remain unclear. This study examined how HL and BID jointly influence multidimensional eating behaviors.

methodsIn this cross-sectional study of Japanese adults, HL was measured using the 14-item Health Literacy Scale. BID was defined as the discrepancy between the perceived (via the Figure Rating Scale) and actual body size (via BMI) and categorized as underestimation, no distortion, or overestimation. Eating behaviors (UE, EE, and CR) were assessed using the Japanese version of the 18-item Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire-R18V2. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the association between HL and BID, and general linear models were used to test whether BID moderated the effects of higher-order HL domains on eating behavior.

resultsAmong the participants, 13.0% were underweight, 60.2% had a normal weight, 18.7% were overweight, and 8.0% were obese. BID was categorized as overestimation (36.7%), non-distortion (53.6%), or underestimation (9.7%). HL scores were not significantly associated with overestimation or underestimation; however, a higher BMI was inversely related to overestimation. Higher functional HL was associated with lower EE, UE, and CR across all BID subgroups. However, associations for communicative HL varied by BID (interaction P = 0.002 for EE, 0.070 for CR); it was positively associated with EE and CR in the underestimated group, but inversely associated with EE in the overestimated group. Critical HL was positively associated with CR in the overestimation group (interaction, P = 0.015).

conclusionFostering functional HL may support healthier eating behaviors, regardless of BID. Communicative HL may be beneficial for individuals with overestimation-type BID, but potentially counterproductive for those with underestimation. Critical HL appears to encourage more restrictive eating, specifically among individuals with overestimated HL.

Indexed as

Body image distortionEating behaviorHealth literacyThree-factor eating questionnaire-R18V2

Identifiers

PMID41320770
PMCPMC12667047

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