Night Eating Syndrome According to Obesity Groups and the Related Factors

To find the frequency of night eating syndrome (NES) in different obesity groups and to determine related factors.

Descriptive cross-sectional study.

Department of Family Medicine, Outpatient Clinics, University of Health Sciences, Kartal Dr. Lutfi Kirdar Training and Research Hospital from December 2018 to January 2019.

Participants were divided into class I, class II, and class III obesity groups according to their BMI levels and administered a survey evaluating their sociodemographic features and a NES questionnaire.

NES was detected in 92 (21.85%) of all participants; whereas, 28 participants (18.67%) of class I obesity group, 32 participants (22.70%) of class II obesity group and 32 participants (24.62%) of class III obesity group had NES (p=0.465). There was no significant difference between individuals with and without NES in terms of age, gender, marital status, income level, occupational status, presence of children, living-together subjects, cigarette consumption, BMI, waist-hip ratio, and waist-height ratio. However, within the class I obesity group, the likelihood of weight loss was significantly lower among participants with NES (p=0.026). There was no relationship between NES and the duration of obesity, dieting, and the number of main meals per day. However, the relationship between NES and the number of snacks per day was significant in class I and III obesity groups (p=0.040 and p=0.034, respectively).   Conclusion: The frequency of NES was found to be high in all obesity groups with no significant difference across groups. Therefore, all obese patients should be evaluated in terms of NES, and nutritional recommendations should be provided in the treatment of obesity. Key Words: Morbid obesity, Night eating syndrome, Obesity.