Investigating the Links Between Food Addiction, Emotional Dysregulation, Impulsivity and Quality of Life in Brazilian and Canadian College Students: A Network Analysis

Introduction

Food addiction (FA) has been associated with emotional dysregulation, impulsivity and reduced quality of life, but its interrelationships remain underexplored. This cross-sectional descriptive study aimed to examine these connections using network analysis.

Methods

Data were collected from 1777 university students in Brazil and Canada through an online survey. Participants were classified into three groups based on the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (mYFAS 2.0): No food addiction (NFA), mild food addiction (MFA) and moderate/severe food addiction (MSFA).

Results

The MSFA group reported significantly higher levels of depression, anxiety, stress, impulsivity and emotional dysregulation, as well as lower quality of life compared to the other groups. Network analysis identified stress as the most influential variable in both samples, whereas impulsivity played a key role in connecting FA with emotional problems, particularly, in the MSFA group.

Conclusions

This study addresses this gap by identifying impulsivity as central to the co-occurrence of FA and emotional dysfunction, thereby offering insights for future research and interventions targeting FA.