Association of body mass index with progression from binge-eating behavior into binge-eating disorder among adolescents in the United States: A prospective analysis of pooled data

Abubakr A A Al-Shoaibi; Jason M Lavender; Sean J Kim; Iris Yuefan Shao; Kyle T Ganson; Alexander Testa; Jinbo He; David V Glidden; Fiona C Baker; Jason M Nagata

doi:10.1016/j.appet.2024.107419

Association of body mass index with progression from binge-eating behavior into binge-eating disorder among adolescents in the United States: A prospective analysis of pooled data

Appetite. 2024 May 15:200:107419. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2024.107419. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pediatrics, University of California, 550 16th Street, 4th Floor, Box 0503, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. Electronic address: abubakr.alshoaibi@ucsf.edu.
² Military Cardiovascular Outcomes Research Program (MiCOR), Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Rd, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA; The Metis Foundation, 84 NE Interstate 410 Loop # 325, San Antonio, TX 78216, USA. Electronic address: jason.lavender.ctr@usuhs.edu.
³ Department of Pediatrics, University of California, 550 16th Street, 4th Floor, Box 0503, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. Electronic address: seabkeem@berkeley.edu.
⁴ Department of Pediatrics, University of California, 550 16th Street, 4th Floor, Box 0503, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. Electronic address: iris.shao@ucsf.edu.
⁵ Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, 246 Bloor St W, Toronto, ON M5S 1V4, Canada. Electronic address: kyle.ganson@utoronto.ca.
⁶ Department of Management, Policy, and Community Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 1200 Pressler Street, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Electronic address: Alexander.Testa@uth.tmc.edu.
⁷ School of Humanities and Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2001 Longxiang Boulevard, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China. Electronic address: hejinbo@cuhk.edu.cn.
⁸ Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of California, 550 16th Street, 2nd Floor, Box 0560, San Francisco, CA 94158-2549, USA. Electronic address: avid.glidden@ucsf.edu.
⁹ Center for Health Sciences, SRI International, 333 Ravenswood Ave, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA. Electronic address: fiona.baker@sri.com.
¹⁰ Department of Pediatrics, University of California, 550 16th Street, 4th Floor, Box 0503, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. Electronic address: jason.nagata@ucsf.edu.

PMID: 38759754
DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2024.107419

Abstract

The association between body mass index (BMI) and binge-eating disorder (BED) is well-established. However, data on the extent to which BMI is associated with progression from binge-eating behavior into BED among adolescents are limited, which was the aim of this investigation. Participants were 9964 U.S. adolescents from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, aged 9-13 at the time of study enrollment. A computerized parent-reported assessment was used to establish adolescents' binge-eating behaviors and BED. Cox proportional hazards models adjusting for sociodemographic covariates were used to examine prospective associations between BMI and likelihood of BED onset among a) adolescents with binge-eating behavior, and b) adolescents with no binge-eating behavior. Of 975 adolescents who met the study criteria for binge-eating behavior, 89 (9.1%) subsequently met the study criteria for BED. Of 8989 adolescents with no binge-eating behavior, 82 (0.9%) subsequently met the study criteria for BED. BMI percentile was significantly associated with the likelihood of BED onset in participants with (adjusted HR = 1.03, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.00, 1.06) and participants without (adjusted HR = 1.05, 95% CI 1.03, 1.07) binge-eating behavior. Results were also significant when examining BMI as a dichotomous predictor (above and below 85th percentile) among those with (adjusted HR = 2.60, 95% CI 1.00, 6.68) and those without (adjusted HR = 6.01, 95% CI 3.90, 11.10) binge-eating behavior. Overall, results indicate that elevated BMI is prospectively associated with a greater risk for BED onset among U.S. adolescents with or without binge-eating behavior. Adolescents with a higher BMI may benefit from screening for binge eating, and prevention/early intervention strategies to mitigate the risk for developing BED.

Keywords: Adolescent; Binge eating; Body mass index; Eating disorders; Weight; Youth.