This study looked at two separate groups of adults and used symptom scores rather than a yes-or-no ADHD label. The first was a community group recruited online (237 adults, most female and highly educated, of whom 33.3% reported an ADHD diagnosis). The second was a university student group (142 people, none reporting an ADHD diagnosis). It was an observational study, so it can show links but not cause.
In both groups, higher inattentive symptoms and higher hyperactive or impulsive symptoms went along with more binge or disinhibited eating and more restrictive eating. Much of this link ran through negative mood, meaning anxiety, depression and stress. Poorer awareness of and reliance on the body's own hunger and fullness signals also helped explain the link between inattentive symptoms and disordered eating, especially binge eating. Inattentive symptoms were still tied to binge eating even after accounting for these paths.
One bodily measure did not fit the pattern. A heartbeat detection task in the second study showed no link to inattentive symptoms. The links did not change with age, gender, body weight or ADHD medication.
The numbers Stats and what the terms mean
The statistics behind the plain-language claims above.
- Kaisari, 2018: heartbeat detection task and inattentive symptoms, r = 0.01, p = 0.94.
What the terms mean:
- p is the chance of seeing a gap at least this big if there were no real difference. Below .05 is usually read as unlikely to be chance alone.
- r is a correlation, from -1 to 1. 0 means no link, and values nearer -1 or 1 mean a stronger link.
Source: Kaisari P, Dourish C, Rotshtein P, et al.. Associations Between Core Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Both Binge and Restrictive Eating. Frontiers in Psychiatry (2018). doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00103