Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, United States of America.
Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, United States of America; Division of Child and Family Services, Department of Health and Human Services, State of Nevada, United States of America.
Eat Behav. 2022 Apr;45:101602. doi: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2022.101602. Epub 2022 Feb 18.
Early pubertal timing increases risk for disordered eating (DE) in females, but the extent to which associations persist after puberty and are relevant to all types of DE symptoms is unclear. Factors that link pubertal timing and DE also remain unknown, although leading theories posit that adiposity and body-focused psychosocial factors play a key role. Thus, this study examined pubertal timing effects on several types of DE symptoms in young adult women and evaluated whether body mass index (BMI), pressures for thinness, thin-ideal internalization, and/or history of weight-based teasing account for such associations.
This study included a racially and ethnically diverse sample of 342 female college students (M = 20.44, SD = 3.46). Women retrospectively reported their age at onset of menses, which served as the pubertal timing indicator, and completed self-report questionnaires on DE symptoms, perceived pressures for thinness, thin-ideal internalization, and history of weight-based teasing. BMI was calculated from height/weight measurements.
Earlier pubertal timing was associated with body dissatisfaction and binge eating, but not other DE symptoms (dieting, excessive exercise, muscle building) in young adult women. BMI accounted for pubertal timing effects on body dissatisfaction, whereas none of the examined factors explained pubertal timing effects on binge eating.
Earlier pubertal timing may exert long-term effects on only some DE symptoms in women, and the etiologic factors underlying pubertal timing effects on DE outcomes may differ across symptom types.
青春期提前会增加女性出现饮食失调（DE）的风险，但青春期后这些关联持续存在的程度以及与所有类型的 DE 症状相关的程度尚不清楚。将青春期提前与 DE 联系起来的因素也尚不清楚，尽管主流理论认为肥胖和以身体为中心的心理社会因素起着关键作用。因此，本研究调查了青春期提前对年轻女性几种类型的 DE 症状的影响，并评估了体重指数（BMI）、瘦身压力、瘦理想内化以及/或基于体重的嘲笑史是否解释了这些关联。
本研究纳入了 342 名不同种族和族裔的女性大学生（M=20.44，SD=3.46）。女性回顾性地报告了她们初潮的年龄，以此作为青春期提前的指标，并完成了关于 DE 症状、感知瘦身压力、瘦理想内化和基于体重的嘲笑史的自我报告问卷。BMI 是根据身高/体重测量值计算得出的。
青春期提前与身体不满和暴食有关，但与年轻女性的其他 DE 症状（节食、过度运动、肌肉锻炼）无关。BMI 解释了青春期提前对身体不满的影响，但所检查的因素都没有解释青春期提前对暴食的影响。
青春期提前可能对女性的某些 DE 症状产生长期影响，青春期提前对 DE 结果的影响的病因因素可能因症状类型而异。
