The effect of metabolic control, self-efficacy, and quality of life on emotional eating in the adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus

The purpose was to investigate the effects of metabolic control, self-efficacy, and quality of life on emotional eating in the adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus. This was a descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational study. A total of 107 adolescents participated. Data were collected using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ 3.0 Diabetes Module, the Diabetes Management Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Emotional Eating Scale. The relationships among emotional eating, metabolic control, self-efficacy, and quality of life were assessed using bivariate correlation analyses. Multiple regression analysis was used to analyze the data. The adolescents with diabetes ranged in age from 11 to 18 years. The mean duration of diabetes was 5.42 ± 3.35 years. Mean A1C levels were 9.29 ± 1.38%, far above the recommended level. When the correlation between emotional eating and self-efficacy was studied in the adolescents, there was a significant positive moderate correlation of self-efficacy with emotional eating. There was a significant negative moderate correlation between quality of life and emotional eating, but no significant correlation between A1C and emotional eating. As a result of the study, it was found that self-efficacy and quality of life of adolescents with type 1 diabetes have an effect on emotional eating, while A1C values of adolescents have no effect on emotional eating. In future studies, it is recommended to add other factors that may affect the emotional eating behaviors of adolescents with diabetes and also to make different studies with a higher number of samples.