Internally Regulated Eating, Body Mass Index, and the Influence of COVID Pandemic-Related Lifestyle Changes Among Middle-Aged Women

Abstract

ABSTRACTObesity is a major cause of preventable disease and mortality, and typical diet and exercise strategies are largely unsuccessful for weight management long-term. Middle-aged women are at particular risk for weight gain. Societal changes related to the COVID pandemic have been associated with poorer eating habits, less activity, and weight gain for many people. People who eat base their eating on their body’s internal physiological cues for hunger and fullness are said to follow an internally regulated eating style. This is associated with lower BMI. This scholarly project used both quantitative and qualitative survey methods to examine the relationship between internally regulated eating style and BMI in a convenience sample of 85 women, aged 40-60 years, who were recruited from their primary care clinic. The MIRES instrument was used to measure internally regulated eating tendencies, and BMI was self-reported. Qualitative survey questions examined women’s weight changes, eating styles and activity levels, and their perceptions of their body relative to societal disruptions resulting from the COVID pandemic. Significant, negative correlations were found between total MIRES scores and BMI, (r = -.253, p = .019), the food legalizing subscale, (r = -.252, p = .020), and the self-efficacy in responding to physical satiation cues subscale (r = -.270, p = .012). For all other subscales, except sensitivity to physical hunger cues, there is a small, not statistically significant negative correlation with BMI. That is, as MIRES scores increased, BMI decreased. Qualitative data indicated that 54% of participants gained weight during the COVID pandemic, and most of these participants’ BMIs were 25 or greater. Increased takeout meals, snacking, sweets, emotional eating, decreased physical activity, and low motivation were frequently reported. Adaptive behaviors such as cooking and eating at home, and continued exercise were typical for participants who avoided weight gain, and their BMIs tended to be less than 25. The findings from this project can be used to develop effective, non-diet approaches for obesity prevention and management which focus on internally regulated eating. Further research should focus on larger, more diverse populations, and on the roles of change, adaptation, and motivation in weight management.