Internet Can Help Combat Teens' Binge Eating
Teenagers who start the day with breakfast are more likely to maintain a healthy body mass index, while Internet-based programs can successfully help adolescents avoid binge eating and maintain a healthy weight, according to two studies published in the March issue of Pediatrics.
MONDAY, March 3 (HealthDay News) -- Teenagers who start the day with breakfast are more likely to maintain a healthy body mass index, while Internet-based programs can successfully help adolescents avoid binge eating and maintain a healthy weight, according to two studies published in the March issue of Pediatrics.
Maureen T. Timlin, Ph.D., and colleagues at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, examined the eating habits of teenagers over a five-year period and found that how often they ate breakfast was inversely associated with body mass index, independent of other confounding and dietary factors.
Megan Jones, of the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology-Stanford Doctor of Psychology Consortium in Palo Alto, Calif., and colleagues conducted a study among 105 high school students at risk for overweight, using a 16-week online intervention or a waiting list as control and found that students in the intervention group binged less, became less concerned about their weight and body shape, and achieved greater weight loss than the control group.
"Although in-person cognitive-behavioral treatment for overweight adolescents seems to yield the strongest effect on weight loss, Internet-facilitated programs may offer an effective means of preventing weight gain among adolescents at risk for overweight," Jones and colleagues conclude.
Abstract - TimlinFull TextAbstract - JonesFull Text (subscription or payment may be required)
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