Anxiety and depression symptoms in women with and without binge eating disorder enrolled in weight loss programs.

Objectives: 1) To investigate the association between binge eating scores, anxiety and depression symptoms, and body mass index (BMI), and 2) to assess the presence of differences in severity of anxiety symptoms, severity of depression symptoms, and BMI in women with and without binge eating disorder.

Method: The sample comprised 113 women aged between 22 and 60 years (39.35±10.85) enrolled in weight loss programs in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil. The following instruments were used: structured interview, Brazilian Economic Classification Criteria, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, and Binge Eating Scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.

Results: A positive association was found between binge eating scores and the severity of anxiety symptoms (p < 0.001) and depression symptoms (p < 0.001). No significant association was observed between BMI and binge eating scores (p = 0.341). There were significant differences between women with and without binge eating disorder with regard to severity of anxiety symptoms (p < 0.001) and severity of depression symptoms (p < 0.001). Conversely, no significant differences were observed between the groups concerning BMI (p = 0.103).

Conclusion: Our findings showed that binge eating is associated with symptoms of anxiety and depression, but not with BMI.