Exami̇ni̇ng of the relationship between anxiety level and emotional eating behavior in the covid-19 pandemic

Introduction: The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has quickly become the top agenda item for the entire humanity since its emergence. The pandemic has unavoidably resulted in a significant decline in our quality of life and radically changed our habits in our daily lives. Increased time spent at home due to quarantine, heightened concerns due to closely monitored pandemic developments, and individual moods affect people's nutrition. This study examines the relationship between individual anxiety levels and emotional eating during the pandemic. Aim: The aim of this study is to determine whether individual anxiety levels are correlated to emotional eating in individuals aged 18-55 during the pandemic. Materials and method: The population of the study consisted of 353 people living in İstanbul. Simple random sampling method was used to select the sample of participants. The study's sample consisted of individuals aged 18-65 selected randomly and on a voluntary basis. The Sociodemographic Data Form, the COVID-19 Fear Scale, the Beck Anxiety Inventory and the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) were used as data collection tools. SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) software was used for statistical analysis. P < 0.05 value was accepted as statistically significant. Results: Of 350 participants who answered questions in the personal information form and questionnaires, 59.5% were female and 40.5% were male. Of the participants, 32.9% were married and 63.1% were single. In line with the results of the study, a positive, medium-level significant correlation was identified between the COVID-19 Fear Scale scores and the Beck Anxiety Inventory scores. There was a significant difference between the COVID-19 Fear Scale scores and the scores of the restraint eating and emotional eating sub-scales of the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire. No significant difference was found between the COVID-19 Fear Scale scores and the external eating sub-scale scores. A significant correlation was determined between the Beck Anxiety Inventory scores and the scores of the emotional eating and external eating sub-scales while no such correlation was found between the Beck Anxiety Inventory scores and the restraint eating sub-scale scores. Discussion: The participating women were found to have significantly higher COVID-19 fear, anxiety, restraint eating, emotional eating and external eating scores compared to men. The anxiety, emotional eating, and external eating scores of the individuals aged 18-35 were determined to be significantly higher compared to the individuals aged 35-50. When the participants were assessed in terms of body mass index, the overweight and obese individuals had significantly higher restraint eating scores than the underweight participants. Conclusion: A positive, significant correlation was identified between the COVID-19 Fear Scale scores and the scores of the emotional eating sub-scale and the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and it was demonstrated that the anxiety level boosted the emotional eating behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic.