Affective temperaments and obesity: Is there an association with binge eating episodes and multiple weight cycling?

Background affective temperaments have been so far understudied in the field of obesity. Therefore, we aimed to assess affective temperaments in outpatients with obesity reporting symptoms of binge eating (BE) and multiple weight cycling (MWC) and to investigate the likelihood of an association between affective temperaments and risk of both conditions. Methods A total of 300 individuals with obesity seeking treatment at the Obesity Unit of an academic hospital were asked to complete self-report measures of affective temperaments, BE, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and quality of life. Results Even in the absence of full-blown mental disorders, symptoms of anxiety and depression emerged in the sample; 197 individuals (65.6%) reported BE and 162 (54%) MWC. The most frequent affective temperament was the depressive one. Depression symptoms and cyclothymic scores (directly), and age and hyperthymic score (inversely) were significantly associated with BE risk, while being an active smoker (directly) and hyperthymic score (inversely) were significantly associated with MWC risk, after controlling for confounders in a multiple logistic regression. Limitations sample size was small, the study was limited to a single center, no formal definition of weight cycling exists and MWC was self-reported. Conclusions A substantial number of outpatients with obesity reported BE and MWC notwithstanding the absence of a formal psychiatric diagnosis. Cyclothymic scores were positively associated with BE while the hyperthymic temperament showed a protective effect on both BE and MWC. These findings suggest the need for multidisciplinary treatments for people with obesity enhancing research on temperament-based psychological interventions.