Prevalence of food addiction in different contexts: systematic review with meta-analysis
Compulsive Eating; Addiction; Obesity; Bariatric Surgery; YFAS.
Given the increasing interest of the scientific community in better understanding the construct of “food addiction” (FA), this dissertation was developed through two result articles. The article was titled as “Prevalence of food addiction determined by the Yale food addiction scale (YFAS) and associated factors: a systematic review with meta-analysis” and aimed to determine, through a systematic review with meta-analysis, the prevalence of FA using the YFAS and its derivatives, exploring possible factors associated with the prevalence of FA in different contexts. The weighted prevalence of food addiction found through the YFAS was 20% (CI95%:18%;21%). The highest prevalences were found in subgroups of studies with clinical samples, with individuals with obesity and overweight. The prevalence of FA was higher in individuals with clinical diagnosis of binge eating (55%; CI95%:34%;75%). As the study populations were predominantly female and because they presented different clinical contexts, they may not be representative of the general population. We emphasize the relevance of this study to direct future research with the aim of understanding eating behavior similar to addiction. The second article was entitled “Prevalence of food addiction in pre and postoperative bariatric surgery patients: a systematic review with meta-analysis”, it aimed to determine, through a systematic review with meta-analysis, the prevalence of AA through the YFAS in the pre- and postoperative period of bariatric surgery patients. The weighted prevalence of AA assessed preoperatively was 32% (CI95%: 27%; 37%). In the evaluation of postoperative patients, the weighted prevalence was 16% (CI95%: 12%; 19%). Only 7 studies prospectively evaluated the effects of bariatric surgery on AA. Future research should prospectively examine the clinical utility and validity of the AA construct after bariatric surgery.