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Associations between childhood autistic traits and adolescent eating disorder behaviours are partially mediated by fussy eating

Leno, Virginia Carter; Micali, Nadia; Bryant-Waugh, Rachel; Herle, Moritz; (2022) Associations between childhood autistic traits and adolescent eating disorder behaviours are partially mediated by fussy eating. European Eating Disorders Review , 30 (5) pp. 604-615. 10.1002/erv.2902. Green open access

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Abstract

Objective: Previous literature shows an increased risk for eating disorders in autistic individuals. This study tested whether fussy eating contributes to the association between childhood autistic traits and adolescent eating disorder behaviours. / Method: Using data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, we estimated the intercept and slope of parent-rated autistic traits and fussy eating between 7 and 14 years (N = 8982) and their association with self-reported eating disorder behaviours at age 14 years, including the indirect path from autistic traits to eating disorder behaviours via fussy eating. Analyses were adjusted for child sex, maternal age at delivery, maternal body mass index and maternal education. / Results: Analyses found a small indirect pathway from autistic traits intercept to eating disorder behaviours via fussy eating slope (b = 0.017, 95% CI = 0.002–0.032, p = 0.026), with higher levels of autistic traits at age 7 years being associated with a shallower decline in fussy eating, which in turn was associated with greater eating disorder behaviours. / Conclusion: Findings point towards fussy eating as a potential link between childhood autistic traits and later disordered eating. Addressing fussy eating patterns before they become entrenched may decrease risk for eating disorders later in development.

Type: Article
Title: Associations between childhood autistic traits and adolescent eating disorder behaviours are partially mediated by fussy eating
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1002/erv.2902
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.2902
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2022 The Authors. European Eating Disorders Review published by Eating Disorders Association and John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Keywords: ALSPAC, autism, eating disorders, fussy eating, longitudinal analyses
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health > Population, Policy and Practice Dept
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10181928
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