Four Facet Mindful Eating and Eating Disorder Risk: Mediation By Depression and Body Mass Index

BACKGROUND: A negative relationship between mindful eating and eating disorder risk has been suggested in previous research. However, the potential mediating roles of depression and body mass index (BMI) in the relationship between the four facets of mindful eating and eating disorders remain understudied. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the associations between the four facets of mindful eating and the risk of eating disorders in adults, and to explore possible mediators of this relationship. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted online with 239 participants. Data were collected using the Four Facet Mindful Eating Scale (FFaMES), the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire-13 (EDE-Q-13), and the Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). To identify potential mediating factors, multiple mediation analyses were performed to examine the relationship between mindful eating and eating disorder risk. RESULTS: Higher levels of mindful eating were inversely correlated with eating disorder risk (r = -0.569, p < 0.001), depression (r = -0.321, p < 0.001), and BMI (r = -0.314, p < 0.001). Conversely, eating disorder risk was positively correlated with both depression (r = 0.268, p < 0.001) and BMI (r = 0.341, p < 0.001). Mediation analyses revealed that depression (β = -0.012, 95% CI [-0.025, -0.002]) and BMI (β = -0.018, 95% CI [-0.033, -0.007]) were potential mediators of the association between non-reactance and eating disorder risk. A similar pattern was observed for non-judgment, with depression (β = -0.016, 95% CI [-0.032, -0.004]) and BMI (β = -0.021, 95% CI [-0.041, -0.007]) identified as potential mediators. Eating with internal awareness was associated with higher eating disorder risk, with depression partially mediating this relationship (β = 0.030, 95% CI [0.008, 0.060]), whereas no mediation effect was found for eating with external awareness (β = 0.021, 95% CI [-0.016, 0.051]). Overall, higher depression (β = -0.012, 95% CI [-0.025, -0.002]) and higher BMI (β = -0.018, 95% CI [-0.064, -0.032]) were identified as potential mediators in the association between lower mindful eating and higher eating disorder risk. CONCLUSION: This study indicated that mindful eating in adults is associated with lower eating disorder risk, and that BMI and depression scores are potential mediators of this relationship.