Loss of appetite in children is a headache for parents, who fear that their children do not ingest the amount of nutrients they need to enjoy good health and develop correctly. And the same thing happens if the little one wants to eat, but only certain foods whose taste he likes, and refuses to try other healthier and more nutritious ones.
However, having a big appetite during childhood would not be ideal either, according to a new study by researchers at the UCL Institute of Epidemiology & Health Care that has revealed that a high response to food stimuli, defined as the impulse to eat when seeing, smelling, or savoring appetizing food, at ages four and five, was associated with a greater likelihood of experiencing a variety of eating disorder symptoms at ages 12 to 14.
The team also noted that a slower pace of eating and feeling full more quickly (high satiety sensitivity) in early childhood could be a protective factor against developing some eating disorder symptoms later. The findings have been published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.
“Although our study cannot prove causality, our findings suggest that response to food cues could be a predisposing risk factor for the onset of eating disorder symptoms in adolescence,” said co-lead author Dr. Ivonne. Derks. “However, a high response to food is also a normal and very common behavior, and should be considered one of many possible risk factors, rather than something parents should worry about,” she added.
Identify risk factors to prevent eating disorders
The authors analyzed data from surveys of 3,670 young people in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands to assess how certain appetite traits in early childhood could be related to the likelihood of developing eating disorder symptoms up to 10 years later. Appetite traits describe our reaction to food and the opportunity to eat, as well as our desire to eat more or less when we experience negative emotions.
They are classified into food approach traits (such as food response, food enjoyment, excessive emotional eating) and food avoidance traits (such as satiety response, picky eating, slow eating, etc.). eating, insufficient emotional eating). In the study, appetite traits were assessed based on parents’ responses to a questionnaire when the children were four or five years old.
Eating disorder symptoms were self-reported by adolescents at ages 12 and 14, when eating disorder symptoms typically begin to manifest. About 10% of adolescents reported symptoms of binge eating, which is characterized by eating an unusual amount of food or experiencing a feeling of loss of control over eating. Additionally, 50% reported at least one behavior to compensate for their food intake or to avoid weight gain, such as skipping a meal.
Greater food responsiveness was found to be linked with a 16% to 47% increase in the likelihood of reporting eating disorder symptoms, including binge eating symptoms, uncontrolled eating, emotional eating, restrained eating, and compensatory behaviors. The 47% increase was found in binge eating symptoms, meaning that teens whose parents rated them the most responsive to food were almost three times more likely to report binge eating symptoms compared to those whose parents rated them the highest. low.
Greater response to food was linked to a 16% to 47% increase in the likelihood of reporting eating disorder symptoms, such as binge eating, emotional or restrained eating
Emotional eating in early childhood was also linked to higher odds of engaging in compensatory behaviors, which are aimed at preventing weight gain, such as skipping meals, fasting, and excessive exercise. Some appetite traits appeared to be protective against developing eating disorder symptoms later in life. A greater satiety response, that is, feeling full more quickly after eating and feeling full for longer, was related to lower odds of uncontrolled eating and compensatory behaviors.
A slower pace of eating, meanwhile, was linked to lower odds of compensatory behaviors and restricted eating. The researchers also found that appetite traits such as rejection of certain foods, eating less due to low mood, and enjoyment of food in early childhood were not linked to later eating disorder symptoms in adolescence.
“Eating disorders can be more difficult to treat effectively once they develop, so it would be best to prevent them in the first place. Our work in identifying risk factors in early life aims to support the development of potential prevention strategies. These could, for example, provide additional support to children at higher risk,” said Dr. Clare Llewellyn, another of the co-authors.
Researchers highlight that a healthy eating environment and responsive parental feeding strategies can help reduce the risk of developing eating disorders. “A healthy food environment is one where healthy foods are available and more prominent, noticeable, and affordable than less healthy options. “This also includes broader access to food, such as the types of food establishments available in our neighborhood and the food we see on television,” explained Dr Zeynep Nas from the UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Healthcare and another of the co-authors of the work.
“Responsive feeding consists of providing nutritious foods at established times for meals and snacks, and then allowing the child to decide what and how much to eat (if at all) without pressuring them,” adds the specialist.
“Overall, our results suggest that developing and testing prevention strategies could be a valuable endeavor. Although appetite has a significant genetic component, we also know that there are environmental influences that provide opportunities for behavioral change,” concludes Professor Pauline Jansen from Erasmus University Rotterdam, and another of the main co-authors.
