Examining associations between adolescent binge eating and binge eating in parents and friends

Abstract

Binge eating is prevalent among adolescents, but little is known about how parents and friends may influence such behaviors. This study examined associations between adolescent binge eating behaviors, and similar behaviors in their parents and friends. Participants were 2,770 target adolescent boys and girls who had at least one friend and/or parent who also participated. Logistic regression, stratified by gender, examined associations between parents' and friends' self-reported binge eating, and similar behaviors in target adolescents. Girls' binge eating was associated with their male friends' (odds ratio = 2.33; p = 0.03) and fathers' binge eating (odds ratio = 3.38; p = 0.02), but not with their female friends' or mothers' binge eating (p > 0.05). For boys, binge eating was not associated with parents' or friends' behavior. Adolescent girls' binge eating is associated with similar behaviors in their other-sex parents and friends. Results should be replicated, and mechanisms explaining this relation should be further explored.