Abstract:

Aim: Our study aims to investigate eating behaviour and quality of life in adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Material and Methods: This study included 100 adolescents diagnosed with ADHD and age-gender matched 100 healthy adolescents. Clinical interview was conducted using “Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Aged Children (K-SADS)” and Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ), Pediatric Quality of Life Scale (PedsQL) self and parent reports, Conners Parent Rating Scale (CPRS) were administered. Results: In ADHD group compared to control group, all subscales were found to be significantly lower in PedsQL self-report and parent-reports (p<0.05), while emotional and external eating subscale scores were found to be statistically significantly higher (p = 0.006, p = 0.001, respectively). In the ADHD group, positive significant correlations were found between emotional eating subscale scores and CPRS inattention (p = 0.038), hyperactivity (p = 0.001), and oppositional behaviour (p = 0.002), and also between the external eating subscale and hyperactivity score (p = 0.024). Regarding self reports of quality of life, significant negative correlations were found between emotional eating subscale score and both emotional functionality (p = 0.05) and psychosocial health total score (p = 0.036). In PedsQL parent reporting, a significant negative correlation was found only between psychosocial health total score (p = 0.034) and emotional eating subscale score. Conclusion: The results of our study indicate the importance of evaluating eating behaviours and quality of life in follow up and treatment of ADHD in terms of preventive strategies for mental health.

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