From high scores to high calories: Investigating the relationship between gaming disorder and unhealthy eating behaviors in the context of wellness

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OBJECTIVE: While the relationship between gaming and eating has been previously investigated, the mechanisms underlying the association between gaming disorder and unhealthy eating behaviors remain unclear. METHOD: A nationally representative sample of 1074 adults from the United Kingdom was recruited via an online survey to examine whether wellness factors such as mental and physical wellness mediate the relationship between gaming disorder and unhealthy eating behaviors. Correlational and latent mediation analyses were conducted to characterize the pattern of associations among these variables. RESULTS: At the correlational level gaming disorder and unhealthy eating behaviors were significantly associated with all key study variables. Moreover, the strongest associations for gaming disorder observed were with unhealthy eating behaviors and physical wellness. Additionally, unhealthy eating behaviors were negatively associated with physical wellness and mental wellness. The findings of the mediation analysis suggested a partial mediation effect with gaming disorder being associated with unhealthy eating behaviors both directly and indirectly via physical wellness but not mental wellness. More specifically, physical wellness significantly mediated the relationship between gaming disorder and unhealthy eating behaviors, indicating that higher levels of gaming disorder were associated with lower physical wellness, which in turn associated with unhealthy eating behaviors while mental wellness did not emerge as a significant mediator. This suggests that psychological well-being alone may not be a primary explanatory pathway for the gaming disorder-unhealthy eating behaviors link. DISCUSSION: These findings support the gaming disorder-unhealthy eating behaviors relationship, highlighting the important role of physical wellness in explaining this association. Future research should explore specific psychological and behavioral mechanisms that further contribute to this relationship.

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