An Ecological Momentary Assessment Examination of the Transdiagnostic Model of Food and Alcohol Disturbance

Food and alcohol disturbance (FAD) proposes that individuals restrain or restrict food intake before, during, or after drinking in order to minimize weight gain and/or increase intoxication. Yet, research has yet to examine the potential functional associations between these behaviors within the FAD model. To examine the underlying tenets of FAD, this paper reports on two ecological momentary assessment (EMA) studies, which measuresd momentary restriction and alcohol use in women with binge eating. Study 1 included 30 women with at least one binge-eating episode at baseline whom completed 14 days of EMA recordings, and Study 2 included forty women with binge-eating symptoms whom completed ten days of EMA recordings. Study 1 analyses showed concurrent associations between meal skipping and avoiding eating to control weight with binge drinking. Study 2 analyses showed an association between fasting and total alcoholic drinks that was moderated by individual differences in overvaluation in shape and weight. That is, when women with higher overvaluation reported fasting since the last EMA signal, they consumed more alcoholic drinks; there was no association among women with lower overvaluation. These studies support the underlying conceptual model of FAD among women with binge eating.