Intuitive eating in the COVID-19 era: a study with university students in Brazil

Background The recurrence of weight gain is attributed to the homeostatic regulation of hunger and satiety signals, influenced by metabolic state, nutrient availability, and non-homeostatic mechanisms shaped by reinforced consequences from experiences. In response, Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch proposed Intuitive Eating (IE) in 1980, countering restrictive diets. IE, inversely correlated with Body Mass Index (BMI), binge eating, and anxiety/depression symptoms, fosters mind-body-food harmony by recognizing hunger and satiety cues. IE encourages meeting physiological, not emotional, needs, permitting unconditional eating, and relying on internal signals for food decisions. Amidst university students' stress, exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic, understanding their eating behavior, particularly intuitive eating levels, becomes crucial. Objective This study aimed to assess the IE level of Brazilian students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods This cross-sectional study, the first to analyze the Intuitive Eating of students in Brazil during the pandemic, was conducted using an online questionnaire. Results The sample comprised 1335 students, most of whom were women (82.17%), with a mean age of 26.12 +/- 7.9 years, and a healthy nutritional status (57.58%). The mean IE score was 3.2 +/- 0.6. A significant association was found between the confinement situation, the type of housing unit, and the IE subscale-Unconditional Permission to Eat (p = 0.043). However, there was no association between the other subscales and the total IE scale. Regarding self-reported mental and eating disorders, the most frequent were anxiety (21.2%), depression (6.5%), and binge eating disorder (BED) (4.7%). IE was negatively associated with BED (B = - 0.66; p < .001), bulimia nervosa (B = - 0.58; p < .001), body mass index (BMI) (p < .001) and self-reported anxiety (B = - .102; p = 0.16). The male sex showed a higher IE score compared with the female sex (p < .001). Conclusion While no significant association was found between IE and the confinement situation, a significant association was found between housing type and the Unconditional Permission to Eat subscale.