Investigating the relationship between food and alcohol disturbance and coping styles among young adults

Background: Food and alcohol disturbance (FAD) represents a phenomenon characterized by a range of dysfunctional eating behaviors individuals engage in when they plan to drink alcohol in order to compensate for alcohol-related calories. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between FAD and coping styles among young adults. Methods: The sample was composed of 379 young adults (274 females and 105 males) with ages ranging from 18 to 30 years who completed a survey online of self-report measures assessing FAD,alcohol misuse, compensatory behaviors and coping styles. Results: FAD was positively correlated with alcohol misuse, fasting, use of laxatives and avoidance strategies and negatively correlated with turning to religion. Results from the hierarchical regression analysis indicated that alcohol misuse and avoidance strategies positively predicted FAD, while turning to religion was a negative predictor. Conclusion: Our study highlighted that the use of strategies focused on avoiding distress arising from stressful situations may be a risk factor for engaging in FAD; conversely, turning to religion in times of difficult life circumstances seem to protect against FAD.