The Role of Dietary Restraint, Depression, Anxiety and Eating Habits in Predicting Obesity and Overweight in a Group of Employed Women in Isfahan

The incidence of obesity and overweight has found an increasing trend in Iran. Obesity has negative consequences on health and is a risk factor for many physical diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes and some types of cancers. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of depression, anxiety, dietary restraint and eating habits in prediction of overweight and obesity in a group of female employees in Isfahan, Iran.
One hundred and ninety eight women were recruited from several organizations in Isfahan using convenience sampling. At first, digital weight and height scale and was used for evaluating their weight and height. Then the participants completed the research measures including Beck Depression Inventory, Dietary Restraint, Speiberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and Eating Habits Questionnaire. Descriptive statistics such as mean, atandard deviation, frequency, Pearson correlation coefficients and multiple regression analysis were used for data analysis using SPSS version 16.
Findings of the present study showed that the majority of the sample (69.5%) fall in a normal range of weight (Body Mass Index -BMI = 18 – 25). BMI increased with age, and about 25 percent of the sample had unhealthy eating habits. The results also indicated that dietary restraint was associated with BMI significantly, but two other variables including depression and anxiety did not have a significant association with BMI. Regression analysis showed that age and dietary restraint predicted obesity and overweight significantly.
The study suggests that age and dietary restraint have an important role in obesity and overweight.