Purpose of the review: To review literature on night eating syndrome (NES) and body mass index (BMI, kg/m2) published in the last 5 years.
Recent findings: Since December, 2013, 11 studies examined the association between NES and BMI. Five of these studies reported a positive relationship, five showed no relationship, and one produced mixed findings. Emotional eating and age were moderators. Twelve studies examined whether there was a difference in BMI between those with and without NES with only five of these finding differences. A primary weakness of the recent literature base is that it is almost entirely cross-sectional. Recent findings regarding the relationship between NES and BMI are mixed. Future research should examine the relationship between these variables longitudinally and continue to examine moderating variables that explain why some individuals manifest excess weight with NES and others do not.
Keywords: Body mass index; Night eating questionnaire; Night eating syndrome; Nocturnal eating; Obesity; Overweight.