O impacto da pandemia Covid-19 e a presença de problemas alimentares numa amostra de estudantes universitários

Abstract

University students have been identified as one of the most affected groups by the pandemic. So far, they present a higher risk to the development of some kind of problem or mental disorder during their academic studies. Therefore, the development of a PCA is also prevalent in this population. The present study aimed to understand the psychological impact of the pandemic in the risk for the development of the behaviour or disturbance of eating symptomatology in university students during the confinement measures. 913 university students from the Portuguese Catholic University participated by filling in an online survey, between the months of May and June 2021. The instruments used were the Sociodemographic Questionnaire, Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire, EADS-21 and COPE. The results showed that there is an association between the weight before and after the pandemic and the development of the eating behaviour symptomatology, as well between the psychopathological symptomatology and strategies of coping. There are still significant differences between the eating behaviour symptomatology and the sex. Concerning to the cycle of studies, no significant differences were found relating to the presence of eating behaviour symptomatology. The pandemic could have exacerbated disturbed eating behaviours or increased the risk to the beginning of an PCA.

Date of Award	14 Jul 2022
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Bárbara César Machado (Supervisor) & Elisa Veiga (Co-Supervisor)