COVID-19 can trigger eating disorders: Beware of these 6 unhealthy dietary habits

One of the fallouts of the COVID-19 pandemic is the increased incidences of eating disorders among the general population. Read on for details.

Many people have complained of weight gain during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Others are distressed with weight loss. The pandemic seems to have come with many health implications and some of them are related to your weight and fitness levels. But how exactly does this virus affect your weight? A new study from the University of Minnesota Medical School and School of Public Health looked into the lingering effects of the current health crisis and found that it can trigger serious eating disorders. In the past one year, we have seen the rapid implementation of public health policies to reduce transmission of the virus. Of course, these are essential and needed to stop the transmission of the virus. But, on the other hand, these policies also lead to disruptions to daily life. This can negatively impact your eating habits and increase the risk of developing eating disorders and symptoms, say researchers. The International Journal of Eating Disorders published this study.

Eating disorders kill one person every 52 minutes

Researchers of this study found correlations between the pandemic and six unhealthy eating behaviors. According to them, the most concerning finding is a slight increase or the re-emergence of eating disorders, which kill roughly 10,200 people every year, which comes to about one person every 52 minutes. Eating disorders claim a lot of people every year and have one of the highest mortality rates across all psychiatric health concerns. According to researchers, it is important to try to make links between the consequences of the pandemic and disordered eating behaviors.

Link between stress and eating disorders

During the course of their study, researchers sought to establish a link between stress, psychological distress, financial difficulties and changes in eating behaviors. They used both qualitative and quantitative data for this. They saw that approximately 8 per cent of the participants reported extreme unhealthy weight control behaviors, 53 per cent had less extreme unhealthy weight control behaviors and 14 per cent reported binge eating. The study revealed that these outcomes were significantly associated with poorer stress management, greater depressive symptoms and moderate or extreme financial difficulties.

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COVID-19 and the 6 eating disorders

After thorough analysis and study, researchers found six key themes of eating behavior changes in people during the pandemic. These are:

Mindless eating and snacking
Generalized decrease in appetite or dietary intake
Increased food consumption
Pandemic-related reductions in dietary intake
Eating to cope
And, a re-emergence or marked increase in eating disorder symptoms

Financial difficulties may be a cause

Obesity claims a lot of life every year. Researchers say that moderate or severe financial difficulties may be linked with disordered eating behaviors. To bring down the risk of mortality in this group of people, they stress on the fact that it is essential that eating disorder preventive interventions and treatment efforts be affordable, easily accessible and widely disseminated to those at heightened risk. As such, online or mobile-based interventions may prove to be effective and accessible modes for targeted intervention efforts.