Abstract

Research consistently suggests that loss of control (LOC) eating in children and adolescents is a key factor contributing to pediatric obesity and eating disorders. However, causes of pediatric LOC eating are yet unclear, and there is a lack of longitudinal research investigating the developmental processes contributing to LOC eating and related outcomes in youth. Physical activity is an understudied behavior that declines during middle childhood to adolescence and may exert an influence in the development of LOC eating via its impact on executive functioning. While physical activity levels and executive functioning have been linked to regulation of eating, no research has examined the mechanistic processes by which these domains may together impact LOC eating during childhood and adolescence. In the current narrative review, a model is proposed that suggests how physical activity and executive functioning influence LOC eating and related outcomes during childhood and adolescence. This model has the potential to influence future theoretical models of pediatric LOC eating and guide future prevention and intervention efforts.

Highlights

  • As children transition from childhood to adolescence, they become increasingly responsible for their own eating behavior – including types of food eaten, how much food is eaten, and when they eat (Bassett et al, 2008)

  • loss of control (LOC) eating begins to emerge across middle childhood into adolescence, with recent data showing that up to 30% of children and adolescents with overweight or obesity report LOC eating with similar prevalence across sex (He et al, 2017)

  • Despite the prognostic relevance of LOC eating for longer-term psychological and physical health, the etiology and maintenance of LOC eating in youth remains poorly understood, as predominant theoretical models of disordered eating have not held up consistently in children and adolescents (Hilbert et al, 2009; Ranzenhofer et al, 2014; Goldschmidt et al, 2018b)

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Summary

INTRODUCTION

As children transition from childhood to adolescence, they become increasingly responsible for their own eating behavior – including types of food eaten, how much food is eaten, and when they eat (Bassett et al, 2008). Despite the prognostic relevance of LOC eating for longer-term psychological and physical health, the etiology and maintenance of LOC eating in youth remains poorly understood, as predominant theoretical models of disordered eating (e.g., affect regulation and interpersonal models) have not held up consistently in children and adolescents (Hilbert et al, 2009; Ranzenhofer et al, 2014; Goldschmidt et al, 2018b). This is a crucial problem for prevention and intervention efforts, which is further evidenced by the limited efficacy of existing weight management and eating disorder interventions in children

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY DECLINE IN MIDDLE CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND PEDIATRIC LOC EATING
Findings
LOC EATING
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