Exploring the pathways linking psychiatric symptom severity to diet quality: The role of dietary self-efficacy

Background & Objective Individuals with mental disorders have a higher risk for metabolic diseases such as adipositas and diabetes, mainly caused by unhealthy lifestyle factors such as unhealthy eating patterns. However, to date, no study has examined the role of dietary self-efficacy in the context of unhealthy eating behavior observed in psychiatric patients. The aim of the study was to (1) test whether dietary self-efficacy mediates the relationship between psychiatric symptom severity and diet quality in psychiatric patients, and (2) examine the association between diet-related self-efficacy and psychiatric symptoms. Methods & Procedures In a cross-sectional study, 405 psychiatric patients and 155 healthy controls (clinical staff members), aged between 18 and 66 years, participated in an anonymously conducted online questionnaire assessing diet quality, dietary self-efficacy, symptom severity, sociodemographic and control variables. Correlations and a mediation analysis were performed. Results Psychiatric patients reported significantly lower diet-related self-efficacy compared to healthy controls (p