Eating Problems in Youths with Type 1 Diabetes During and After Lockdown in Italy: An 8-Month Follow-Up Study

Alda Troncone; Antonietta Chianese; Crescenzo Cascella; Angela Zanfardino; Alessia Piscopo; Serena Rollato; Dario Iafusco

doi:10.1007/s10880-022-09884-7

Eating Problems in Youths with Type 1 Diabetes During and After Lockdown in Italy: An 8-Month Follow-Up Study

J Clin Psychol Med Settings. 2023 Mar;30(1):227-237. doi: 10.1007/s10880-022-09884-7. Epub 2022 May 30.

Authors

Alda Troncone¹, Antonietta Chianese¹, Crescenzo Cascella¹, Angela Zanfardino², Alessia Piscopo³, Serena Rollato³, Dario Iafusco³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Caserta, Italy.
² Department of the Woman, of the Child and of the General and Specialized Surgery, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Via L. De Crecchio 2, 80138, Naples, Italy. dottangelazanfardino@gmail.com.
³ Department of the Woman, of the Child and of the General and Specialized Surgery, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Via L. De Crecchio 2, 80138, Naples, Italy.

Abstract

Eighty-five youths with T1D and 176 controls aged 8-19 years were asked to complete online questionnaires (ChEAT and EAT-26) measuring disordered eating behaviors (DEBs) during (baseline) and after (8-month follow-up) the lockdown. DEB symptoms in all participants (especially younger than 13 years), glycemic control, and zBMI were found unchanged from baseline to follow-up (all p > .05). After 8 months, the ChEAT/EAT-26 critical score frequency decreased significantly in controls (p = .004), as was the score for the ChEAT/EAT-26's Oral Control subscale in both groups (T1D: p = .005; controls: p = .01). Participants with T1D, especially those older than 13 years, had higher ChEAT/EAT-26 Dieting scores (p = .037) and lower ChEAT/EAT-26 Oral Control scores (p = .046) than controls. Unchanged DEB symptoms suggest that the COVID-19 restrictions did not significantly affect participants' eating behaviors and that a general adaptation to the challenges of lockdown and other pandemic containment measures occurred in both T1D and control participants.

Keywords: Adolescents; COVID-19 pandemic; Children; Disordered eating behaviors; Type 1 diabetes.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
COVID-19* / epidemiology
Communicable Disease Control
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1* / epidemiology
Feeding and Eating Disorders* / epidemiology
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Italy / epidemiology