Dietary restraint, binge eating, and dietary behavior patterns

Abstract

Fifty women ranging in age from 18 to 40 completed the Dietary Restraint Scale, Bulimia Test, Beck Depression Inventory, and Attitudes Toward Foods questionnaire. Thirty-nine of the participants returned 4-day dietary self-monitoring forms on which they recorded time of eating, description and quantity of food intake, binge eating, and purging. Bulimia Test scores correlated highly with both the Concern with Dieting and Weight Fluctuation factors of the Restraint Scale. No differences in mean, high, or low caloric intake were found between high and low scorers on the Restraint Scale or Bulimia test. When days on which subjects reported binge eating were excluded from the analysis, Binge eaters and highly restrained subjects consumed significantly fewer calories than their low scoring counterparts. Subjects who scored high on the Weight Fluctuation factor of the Restraint Scale evaluated foods as higher in calories than low scorers. High scorers on both factors of the Restraint Scale, but particularly Concern with Dieting, reported significantly more negative emotion associated with eating common foods. The results support the importance of cognitive and emotional dimensions in dietary restraint and binge eating.