Аlexithymia and eating attitudes among adolescent and young girls of non-clinical population

The link between alexithymia and eating disturbances risk among 117 girls (age 17,6 + 3,2) of Moscow non-clinical population was studied. Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), Eating Attitude Test (EAT-26), Eating Disorder Inventory-2 (EDI-2), Body appreciation scale (BAS) were used. Girls with evident alexithymia show higher potential risk of eating disturbances (EAT-26 total score above 20), than girls without alexithymia. TAS-20 total score demonstrates positive correlations with EAT-26 total score and “Oral control” subscale, and with EDI-2 subscales: “Drive for thinness”, “Ascetism”, “Maturity fears”, “Ineffectiveness”, “Social insecurity”, “Emotional disregulation”, “Interoceptive deficits”. The negative correlations between TAS-20 total score, body dissatisfaction and body mass index were obtained. The role of alexithymia as possible predictor of eating disturbances was discussed.

1. Bylkina N.D. Aleksitimiya (analiticheskii obzor zarubejnyh issledovanii) // Vestn. Mosk. Un-ta, 1995, ser. 14, №1
2. Eres'ko D.B., Isurina G.L., Kaidanovskaya E.V. i dr. Aleksitimiya i metody ee opredeleniya pri pogranichnyh psihosomaticheskih rasstroistvah. Posobie dlya psihologov i vrachei. SPb., 2005.
3. Zanozin A.V. Kliniko-epidemiologicheskie i psihoprofilakticheskie aspekty nervnoi anoreksii. Dis. kand. med. nauk, 2002.
4. Kelina M.Yu., Marenova E.V., Meshkova T.A. Neudovletvorennost' telom i vliyanie roditelei i sverstnikov kak faktory riska narushenii pischevogo povedeniya sredi devushek podrostkovogo i yunosheskogo vozrasta // Psihologicheskaya nauka i obrazovanie, 2011, №5.
5. Nikolaeva N.O., Meshkova T.A. Narusheniya pischevogo povedeniya: social'nye, semeinye i biologicheskie predposylki. // Voprosy psihicheskogo zdorov'ya detei   podrostkov, 2011, ser. 11, №1.
6. Semina T.I. Risk razvitiya rasstroistv pischevogo povedeniya u shkol'nic i studentok // Vestn. SibGMU, 2000, №2.
7. Avalos L., Tylka T., Wood-Barcalow N. The body appreciation scale: development and psychometric evaluation // Body image, 2005, No 2.
8. Berandis D., Carano A., Gambi F. et al. Alexithymia and its relationships with body checking and body image in a non-clinical female sample // Eating behaviors, 2007, No 8.
9. Berardis D., Serroni N., Campanella D. et al. Alexithymia and its relationships with dissociative experiences, body dissatisfaction and eating disturbances in a non-clinical female sample // Cogn. Ther. Res., 2009, v. 33.
10. Brunch H. Perceptual and conceptual disturbances in anorexia nervosa // Psychosomatic medicine, 1962, v. 24.
11. Chisuwa N., O’Dea J. Body image and eating disorders amongst Japanese adolescents: a review of the literature // Appetite, 2009, No 9.
12. De Vries A.M.M., Forni V., Voellinger R., Stiefel F. Alexithymia in cancer patients: review of the literature // Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2012, v.81.
13. Eizaguirre A., de Cabezon A., de Alda I. et al. Alexithymia and its relationships with anxiety and depression in eating disorders // Personality and individual differences, 2004, v. 36.
14. Espina A. Alexithymia in parents of daughters with eating disorders. Its relationships with psychopathological and personality variables // Journal of psychosomatic research, 2003, v.55.
15. Fenwick A., Sullivan K. Potential link between body dysmorphic disorder symptoms and alexithymia in an eating-disordered treatment- seeking sample // Psychiatry research, 2011, v. 189.
16. Garner D., Olmsted M., Garfinkel P., Bohr Y. The eating attitude test: psychometric features and clinical correlates // Psychological medicine, 1982, No 12.
17. Garner D.M. Eating disorder inventory—2. Florida, U.S.A.: Psychological assessment resources, Inc. 1991.
18. Garner D.M. Eating disorder inventory—3. Professional manual. Florida, U.S.A.: Psychological assessment resources, Inc. 2004.
19. Ham B.-J., Lee M.-S., Lee Y.-M., Kim M.-K., Choi M.-J., Oh K-S., Jung H.Y., Lyoo I.K. Choi I.-G. Association between the catechol o-methyltransferase val108/158met polymorphism and alexithymia // Neuropsychobiology, 2005, v. 52.
20. Jacobi C., Hayward C., de Zwaan M., Kraemer H. C., Agras W. S. Coming to terms with risk factors for eating disorders: application of risk terminology and suggestions for a general taxonomy // Psychological bulletin, 2004. v. 130, No. 1.
21. Jorgensen M.M., Zachariae R., Skytthe A., Kyvik K. Genetic and environmental factors in alexithymia: a population-based study of 8,785 Danish twin pairs // Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2007, v.76.
22. Kench S., Irwin H.J. Alexithymia and childhood family environment // Journal of clinical psychology, 2000, v.56, No. 6.
23. Kooiman C. G., van Rees Vellinga S., Spinhoven P., Draijer N., Trijsburg R., Rooijmans H.G.M. Childhood adversities as risk factors for alexithymia and other aspects of affect dysregulation in adulthood // Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2004, v.73.
24. Larsen J.K., Brand N., Bermond B., Hijman R. Cognitive and emotional characteristics of alexithymia. A review of neurobiological studies // Journal of psychosomatic research 2003, v.54.
25. Lewinsohn P.M., Striegel-Moore R.H., Seeley J.R. Epidemiology and natural course of eating disorders in young women from adolescence to young adulthood. J. Am. // Child Adolesc. Psychiatry, 2000, 39.
26. O’Keefe P., Lovell D.M. Eating disorder inventory scores in Russia and Britain: A preliminary comparison // European eating disorders review, 1999. v.7.
27. Picardi A., Fagnani C., Gigantesco A., Toccaceli V., Lega I., Stazi M. A. Genetic influences on alexithymia and their relationship with depressive symptoms // Journal of psychosomatic research, 2011, v.71.
28. Quinton S., Wagner H. Alexithymia, ambivalence over emotional expression and eating attitudes // Personality and individual differences, 2005, v. 38.
29. Salminen J.K., Saarijarvi S., Toikka T., Kauhanen J., Aarela E. Alexithymia behaves as a personality trait over a 5-year period in Finnish general population // Journal of psychosomatic research, 2006, v.61.
30. Sim L., Zeman J. The contribution of emotion regulation to body dissatisfaction and disordered eating in early adolescent girls // Journal of youth and adolescence, 2006, No 2.
31. Speranza M., Loas G., Wallier J., Corcos M. Predictive value of alexithymia in patients with eating disorders; a 3-year prospective study // Journal of psychosomatic research, 2007, v. 63.
32. Szatmari P., Georgiades S., Duku E., Zwaigenbaum L., Goldberg J., Bennett T., Alexithymia in parents of children with autism spectrum disorder // Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2008,  v.38, p.1859–1865.
33. Taylor G.J. Recent developments in alexithymia theory and research. // Canadian journal of psychiatry, 2000, v. 45.
34. Taylor G.J., Bagby R. & Parker J.D. The alexithymia construct: a potential paradigm for psychosomatic medicine // Psychosomatics, 1991, v. 32.
35. Valera E. M, Berenbaum H. A twin study of alexithymia // Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2001, v.70, No 5.