A prospective study of adolescent eating in the absence of hunger and body mass and fat mass outcomes.

OBJECTIVE

Eating in the absence of hunger (EAH) refers to the consumption of palatable foods in a sated state. It has been proposed that EAH promotes excess weight gain in youth; yet there are limited prospective data to support this hypothesis. We examined whether EAH at baseline predicted increases in body mass (BMI and BMIz) and fat mass (kg) 1 year later among adolescent boys and girls.

METHODS

EAH was assessed as adolescents' consumption of palatable snack foods following eating to satiety from an ad libitum lunch buffet. Parents also completed a questionnaire about their children's EAH. Body composition was assessed using air displacement plethysmography.

RESULTS

Of 196 adolescents assessed for EAH at baseline, 163 (83%) were re-evaluated 1 year later. Accounting for covariates, which included respective baseline values for each dependent variable, race, height, age, sex, and pubertal stage, there were no significant associations between baseline observed or parent-reported EAH and change in adolescent BMI, BMIz, or fat mass. Results did not differ by sex, child weight status, or maternal weight status.

CONCLUSIONS

No evidence was found to support the hypothesis that EAH is a unique endophenotype for adolescent weight or fat gain.