Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Center for Pediatric Obesity Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2021 May;45(5):1086-1094. doi: 10.1038/s41366-021-00778-6. Epub 2021 Feb 18.
The Child and Adult Eating Behavior Questionnaires (CEBQ, AEBQ) are established measures of eating behaviors. However, no similar measure is available for adolescents. Prior research has validated the AEBQ in adult samples, and one study has explored using the measure with adolescents. However, no studies to date have examined the validity of the AEBQ in adolescent clinical populations. Furthermore, no studies have examined associations between the AEBQ and indicators of health status in adolescents.
A total of 280 adolescents (12-17 years old, 60% female) seen in a pediatric weight management clinic completed the AEBQ at intake. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted with AEBQ items to evaluate the model fit of one-, two-, seven-, and eight-factor structures. Intercorrelations between scale scores from AEBQ Food Approach and Food Avoidance domains were calculated. Associations of AEBQ scales with body mass index (BMI) and binge-eating behaviors were examined using Spearman Rho correlations and independent t-tests.
CFAs revealed that the best fitting model was a seven-factor structure excluding the Hunger scale, although overall model fit was only marginally acceptable (X = 980.94, CFI = 0.925, TLI = 0.915, RMSEA = 0.074). Intercorrelation analyses indicated that all Food Approach scales were significantly associated with one another (r = 0.243-0.654); Food Avoidance scales were inconsistently correlated (r = 0.034-0.439). No AEBQ scales were correlated with BMI (r = -0.101-0.082). Stronger links were found with binge eating; higher frequency binge-related behaviors were associated with higher Food Approach scores.
The seven-factor structure of AEBQ demonstrates a marginally acceptable fit for treatment-seeking adolescents with obesity. The Food Approach scales demonstrated more convergent validity than the Food Avoidance scales. The Food Approach scales also exhibited some clinical utility for identifying patients with increased risk for binge eating, which is a common target for behavioral intervention. Implications for maximizing the AEBQ's potential for assessing eating behaviors in adolescents with obesity are discussed.
儿童和成人饮食行为问卷（CEBQ，AEBQ）是已确立的饮食行为测量工具。然而，目前还没有类似的适用于青少年的测量工具。先前的研究已经验证了 AEBQ 在成人样本中的有效性，并且有一项研究探索了使用该工具对青少年进行测量。然而，迄今为止，还没有研究检验 AEBQ 在青少年临床人群中的有效性。此外，也没有研究检验 AEBQ 与青少年健康状况指标之间的相关性。
在一家儿科体重管理诊所就诊的 280 名青少年（12-17 岁，60%为女性）在就诊时完成了 AEBQ。采用验证性因子分析（CFA）对 AEBQ 项目进行分析，以评估单因素、双因素、七因素和八因素结构的模型拟合情况。计算 AEBQ 食物接近和食物回避两个领域的量表得分之间的相互关系。使用 Spearman Rho 相关系数和独立 t 检验来检验 AEBQ 量表与体重指数（BMI）和暴食行为之间的相关性。
CFA 结果显示，最佳拟合模型是一个排除饥饿量表的七因素结构，尽管整体模型拟合仅略有可接受（X=980.94，CFI=0.925，TLI=0.915，RMSEA=0.074）。相关性分析表明，所有食物接近量表彼此之间均显著相关（r=0.243-0.654）；而食物回避量表的相关性不一致（r=0.034-0.439）。AEBQ 量表与 BMI 无相关性（r=-0.101-0.082）。与暴食行为相关性更强；更高频的与暴食相关行为与更高的食物接近评分相关。
AEBQ 的七因素结构对寻求治疗的肥胖青少年具有可接受的拟合度。食物接近量表比食物回避量表具有更强的收敛有效性。食物接近量表也显示出一些临床效用，可用于识别有暴食风险的患者，而暴食是行为干预的常见目标。讨论了最大限度发挥 AEBQ 评估肥胖青少年饮食行为潜力的意义。
