Adolescent body dissatisfaction and disordered eating: Predictors of later risky health behaviours

Body dissatisfaction is prevalent among teenagers, and may influence the uptake of risky health behaviours. The study assessed the influence of body dissatisfaction on smoking, cannabis use, drug use, self-harm, gambling, and drinking and the mediating role of disordered eating in a population-based...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social science & medicine (1982) Vol. 238; p. 112458
Main Authors: Bornioli, Anna, Lewis-Smith, Helena, Smith, Andrew, Slater, Amy, Bray, Isabelle
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2019
Pergamon Press Inc
Subjects:
Adolescence
Adolescent
Adolescent Behavior - psychology
Adolescents
ALSPAC
Behavior
Body dissatisfaction
Body image
Body Image - psychology
Cohort Studies
Discontent
Disordered eating
Drinking behavior
Drug abuse
Drug use
Drugs
Early intervention
Eating disorders
Feeding and Eating Disorders - complications
Feeding and Eating Disorders - epidemiology
Feeding and Eating Disorders - psychology
Female
Gambling
Gambling - epidemiology
Gambling - etiology
Gambling - psychology
Health behavior
Health education
Health Risk Behaviors
Health status
High risk
Human body
Humans
Logistic Models
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Marijuana
Marijuana Abuse - epidemiology
Marijuana Abuse - etiology
Marijuana Abuse - psychology
Mediation
Parent-child relations
Public health
Risk behavior
Risk Factors
Risky health behaviours
Satisfaction
Self destructive behavior
Self injury
Self-Injurious Behavior - epidemiology
Self-Injurious Behavior - etiology
Self-Injurious Behavior - psychology
Smoking
Smoking - epidemiology
Smoking - psychology
Symptoms
United Kingdom - epidemiology
Uptake
Young Adult
United Kingdom
Body dissatisfaction
Adolescence
ALSPAC
Disordered eating
Risky health behaviours
ISSN:0277-9536, 1873-5347, 1873-5347
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Body dissatisfaction is prevalent among teenagers, and may influence the uptake of risky health behaviours. The study assessed the influence of body dissatisfaction on smoking, cannabis use, drug use, self-harm, gambling, and drinking and the mediating role of disordered eating in a population-based sample of British adolescents. Participants were 2634 females and 1684 males from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) cohort. Logistic regression was used to test if body dissatisfaction at 14 years old predicted the onset of risky health behaviours at 21 years old. Mediation analysis tested the mediating role of disordered eating at 16 years old on each risky health behaviour. Among females, body dissatisfaction predicted smoking (OR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.15, 1.72), cannabis use (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.00, 1.43), drug use (OR = 1.51, 95% CI = 1.20, 1.90), self-harm (OR = 1.44, 95% CI = 1.13, 1.84) and high-risk drinking (OR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.10, 1.80). Disordered eating symptoms had mediating effects on some behaviours. Among males, body dissatisfaction predicted smoking (OR = 1.44, 95% CI = 1.14, 1.81) and no effect of disordered eating was found on any risky health behaviour. This is the first prospective study to demonstrate that body dissatisfaction in adolescence predicts the occurrence of several risky health behaviours, and elucidates the mediating role of disordered eating. The findings highlight that body dissatisfaction is a public health concern. Early interventions to promote body satisfaction may reduce the prevalence of later risky health behaviours. •Adolescent body dissatisfaction predicts onset of risky health behaviours.•Disordered eating mediated effect of body dissatisfaction on some behaviours.•Body dissatisfaction should be viewed as a public health concern.•Early body image interventions may reduce onset of later risky health behaviours.•These patterns were most marked for females and less present for males.
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ISSN:0277-9536
1873-5347
1873-5347
DOI:10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.112458