Browsing by Author "Wallis, D. J."
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Item Metadata only “All eyes are on you”: anorexia nervosa patient perspectives of in-patient mealtimes.(2012) Long, S.; Wallis, D. J.; Leung, N.; Meyer, CarolineThe aim of this qualitative study was to investigate in-patient perceptions of mealtimes on eating disorders units. Individual interviews were conducted with 12 women with anorexia nervosa. Using thematic analysis, three themes emerged as important: 1) Mealtime delivery (logistical factors influencing meals); 2) Individual outcomes (cognitions, emotions, behaviours and physical sensations during meals); and 3) Mealtime characteristics (including disengagement, perceived battlegrounds, and a desire for involvement in mealtimes). Future research should focus on areas of treatment delivery identified as important by patients. Recommendations are made regarding mealtime protocols based on patients’ views, with increased recognition of behavioural, cognitive, physical and emotional aspects.Item Metadata only Attentional Bias and Slowed Disengagement from Food(2013) Wilson, C.; Wallis, D. J.This experiment examined fast (orientation) and slow (disengagement) components of attention to food and interpersonal threat words in high and low restrained eaters using a modified Stroop task. Target words (food, interpersonal ego threat, neutral) were presented prior to a sequence of four matched neutral words. Participants were slow to disengage from food and ego threat words, and this pattern was particularly striking for the high restraint group. Findings show no evidence of an orientation bias but indicate that slowed disengagement from these stimuli can be demonstrated consistently using the Stroop task. However, restraint was not a significant predictor, and slowed disengagement was also found in the neutral condition, suggesting a categorical effect. This study provides important suggestions for modifications of Stroop tasks designed to target both attention bias and disengagement. Implications of slowed disengagement from disorder-relevant stimuli are discussed in relation to the development of disordered eating.Item Metadata only Can physical activity help to maintain cognitive functioning and psychosocial well-being among breast cancer patients treated with chemotherapy? A randomised controlled trial study protocol(2015) Wallis, D. J.; Gokal, K.; Munir, F.; Ahmed, S.; Boiangiu, I.; Kancherla, K.Background: Evidence suggests chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer is associated with side effects such as cognitive impairment in domains of memory, attention, concentration and executive function. Cognitive impairments reported by patients have been associated with higher levels of emotional distress. To date, intervention studies to alleviate cognitive impairment associated with chemotherapy have focused on psycho-educational techniques or cognitive training. Studies have not yet considered physical activity as a potential for alleviating cognitive problems. Physical activity interventions are reported to be effective in alleviating emotional distress and fatigue in those with breast cancer. They have also been reported to improve cognitive functioning in the elderly, in those suffering with dementia and in children. We propose that physical activity could also help to alleviate cognitive impairments in women diagnosed with breast cancer. The study has been designed using a recently developed taxonomy of behaviour change techniques to reliably report the content of the intervention to allow future replication. Method: This study will deliver a home-based moderate intensity walking intervention to women diagnosed with breast cancer mid-way through their chemotherapy treatment and will compare them to patients receiving usual care alone. The primary outcome measure for this intervention is changes in an objective measure of memory assessed using the Digit Span. Secondary outcome measures include: objective measures of executive function; attention; visual spatial skills; self report cognitive function; self-report fatigue; anxiety; depression; mood and self-esteem. As emotional distress has been associated with self-reporting of cognitive problems, this intervention will further test whether emotional distress mediates between the amount of walking undertaken during the intervention period and levels of self-reported cognitive functioning. Discussion: The development of an effective intervention for preventing difficulties in emotional and cognitive functioning of cancer patients’ post-treatment will help to guide health care professionals to improve patients’ overall quality of life. It will also provide direction for future research, ultimately to improve the day to day functioning of breast cancer survivors.Item Metadata only Childhood obesity and socioeconomic status: a novel role for height growth limitation.(2005) Cecil, J. E.; Watt, P.; Murrie, I. S. L.; Wrieden, W.; Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.; Bolton-Smith, C.; Palmer, C. N. A.OBJECTIVE: To assess prevalence and socioeconomic context of overweight and obesity in a cohort of Scottish children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Primary schools in Dundee, Angus, and Fife, Eastern Scotland, UK. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1240 boys and 1214 girls aged between 4–10 y. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Weight, height and body mass index (weight/height2). RESULTS: Overall overweight or obesity prevalence was 24.6%, while prevalence of obesity alone was 6.1%. Individuals from schools with a high level of low-income families were 65% more likely to be overweight as judged by BMI. However, these children weighed the same as more affluent children of the same age, but were 1.26 cm shorter. CONCLUSION: These data confirm the continued increase in childhood obesity in the UK and reveal a role for height-growth limitation in the absence of overall growth restriction, among children from low-income groups. This observation raises important questions regarding socioeconomic environmental factors in promoting the currently increasing levels of obesity.Item Metadata only Development of the Mealtime Emotions Measure for adolescents (MEM-A): Gender differences in emotional responses to family mealtimes and eating psychopathology(2015) White, Hannah J.; Haycraft, Emma; Wallis, D. J.; Arcelus, Jon; Leung, NewmanThis study aimed to examine the factor structure of the Mealtime Emotions Measure for adolescents (MEMA), a novel measure of emotional responses experienced during family mealtimes. Additionally, it examined gender differences in mealtime emotions and also the relationships between mealtime emotions and levels of eating psychopathology, when controlling for anxiety or depression. Adolescent participants (N = 527; 282 girls, 245 boys) with a mean age of 15.9 years completed the new mealtime measure for adolescents (MEM-A), in addition to questions about family mealtime atmosphere, and measures assessing symptoms of anxiety, depression, and eating psychopathology. Factor analysis produced a three factor solution for the MEM-A with two subscales relating to different types of negative mealtime emotions (Anxiety-related mealtime emotions and Anger-related mealtime emotions) and one subscale relating to Positive mealtime emotions. Generally, girls reported experiencing more Anxiety-related mealtime emotions compared to boys. Having conducted separate analyses controlling for levels of either anxiety or depression, there were several significant associations for both girls and boys between mealtime emotions, particularly Anxiety-related emotions, and eating psychopathology. The findings suggest that some mealtime emotions are associated with increased eating psychopathology. Replication and detailed examination of these emotional responses is required.Item Metadata only Effects of a self-managed home-based walking intervention on psychosocial health outcomes for breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy: a randomised controlled trial(2015) Gokal, K.; Wallis, D. J.; Ahmed, S.; Boiangiu, I.; Kancherla, K.; Munir, F.Item Metadata only Effects of distraction and focused attention on actual and perceived food intake in females with non-clinical eating psychopathology.(2011) Long, S.; Meyer, Caroline; Leung, Newman; Wallis, D. J.The aim of this study was to determine the effects of distraction and focused attention on both food intake and accuracy of perceived intake in women with non-clinical levels of disordered eating. In a laboratory study, twenty-seven young women consumed three identical pasta meals once a week for three consecutive weeks. Meals were eaten ad libitumduring a control and two test conditions, in which attention was either diverted away from (distraction condition) or directed towards food-related stimuli (focused attention condition). They also completed the drive for thinness, bulimia and body dissatisfaction subscales of the Eating Disorders Inventory-2. Intake was significantly higher in the distraction than in the control or focused attention conditions, but was not related to eating psychopathology. A measure of accuracy of perceived intake indicated that drive for thinness was associated with overestimation of food intake in the focused attention condition. This study suggests that distraction could promote food intake in all non-clinical consumers, irrespective of individual differences in eating behaviours. Furthermore, it suggests that those with a high drive for thinness may overestimate intake when required to focus on their food. These findings could have implications for mealtime interventions in the treatment of eating disorders.Item Metadata only Emotion recognition and alexithymia in females with sub-clinical eating psychopathology.(2010) Ridout, N.; Thom, C.; Wallis, D. J.Objectives: The aims were to determine if emotion recognition deficits observed in eating disorders generalise to non-clinical disordered eating and to establish if other psychopathological and personality factors contributed to, or accounted for, these deficits. Design: Females with high (n=23) and low (n=22) scores on the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI) were assessed on their ability to recognise emotion from videotaped social interactions. Participants also completed a face memory task, a Stroop task, and self-report measures of alexithymia, depression and anxiety. Results: Relative to the low EDI group, high EDI participants exhibited a general deficit in recognition of emotion, which was related to their scores on the alexithymia measure and the bulimia subscale of the EDI. They also exhibited a specific deficit in the recognition of anger, which was related to their scores on the body dissatisfaction subscale of the EDI. Conclusions: In line with clinical eating disorders, non-clinical disordered eating is associated with emotion recognition deficits. However, the nature of these deficits appears to be dependent upon the type of eating psychopathology and the degree of co-morbid alexithymia.Item Metadata only Emotions and eating: self-reported and experimentally-induced changes in food intake under stress.(2009) Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.Two studies investigated the stress–eating relationship. The first examined self-reported changes in intake of snack foods, whilst the second investigated stress-induced overconsumption in a laboratory setting comparing high (HF) and low-fat (LF) snacks. Eighty-nine females completed the Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (DEBQ) [Van Strien, T., Fritjers, J. E. R., Bergers, G. P. A., & Defares, P. B. (1986). Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire for assessment of restrained, emotional and external eating behaviour. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 5, 295–315] and a self-report measure designed to evaluate changes in eating in response to stress. Increased intake of HF snacks was associated with high emotional eating but not with restraint. A laboratory-based experiment compared intake of HF and LF snacks after ego-threatening and neutral Stroop colour-naming tasks. Intake was suppressed by 31.8% in restrained compared to unrestrained eaters across tasks. Restrained eaters consumed significantly less after ego-threat than after the neutral manipulation, but this was associated only with intake of the LF snack. Restrained eaters’ intake of dried fruit was suppressed by 33.2% after ego-threat relative to the neutral task, despite a significant increase in hunger for this group following ego-threat. These results suggest that the type and variety of foods offered influences the link between stress and eating in laboratory settings. Further research should aim to replicate and extend these findings, with a view to informing potential interventions for stress-related eating.Item Metadata only Energy intakes of children after preloads: adjustment, not compensation.(2005) Cecil, J. E.; Palmer, C. N. A.; Wrieden, W.; Murrie, I. S. L.; Bolton-Smith, C.; Watt, P.; Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.Background: Young children accurately compensate for energydense preloads consumed before test meals. The accuracy of compensation seems to deteriorate as a function of age. Objective: The hypothesis that accurate energy compensation varies by age, body mass index, and individual characteristics of children and their mothers was tested. Design: Energy intake (EI) from a test meal was measured in 74 children aged 6–9 y 90 min after the ingestion of no-energy (NE), low-energy (LE), or high-energy (HE) preload snacks. The NE preload consisted of 250 mL water, the LE preload consisted of a 56-g muffin a 250-mL orange drink (783 kJ), and the HE preload consisted of a 56-g muffin a 250-mL orange drink (1628 kJ). Results: A significant dose-related reduction in EI was found after the preloads; younger children adjusted more effectively than did older children, although total EI (including preload energy) indicated that the adjustment was not accurate. The compensation index (COMPX) differed by preload and age group; COMPX scores were higher between the NE and LE preloads (younger children: 44.4 9.3%; older children: 57.0 11.6%) than between the NE and HE preloads (39.6 4.9%; 31.3 6.2%) and the LE and HE preloads (35.2 7.8%; 7.4 9.8%). This finding indicates a more consistent response across preloads and a greater sensitivity to energy load by younger than by older children. High interindividual variation and low intraindividual variation inCOMPXwas found. The tendency to over- or undereat in response to the preloads (deviation from perfect) correlated directly and positively with maternal concerns about child overweight, not with actual BMI. Conclusions: The children adjusted their EIs in response to different preloads, and the younger children did so more effectively than did the older children. Poor short-term energy compensation mayItem Metadata only The influence of eating psychopathology on autobiographical memory specificity and social problem solving(2015) Wallis, D. J.; Ridout, N.; Matharu, M.; Sanders, E.Item Metadata only The influence of emotional intensity on facial emotion recognition in disordered eating(Elsevier, 2012) Ridout, N.; Wallis, D. J.; Autwal, Y.; Sellis, J.Significant facial emotion recognition (FER) deficits have been observed in participants exhibiting high levels of eating psychopathology. The current study aimed to determine if the pattern of FER deficits is influenced by intensity of facial emotion and to establish if eating psychopathology is associated with a specific pattern of emotion recognition errors that is independent of other psychopathological or personality factors. Eighty females, 40 high and 40 low scorers on the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI) were presented with a series of faces, each featuring one of five emotional expressions at one of four intensities, and were asked to identify the emotion portrayed. Results revealed that, in comparison to Low EDI scorers, high scorers correctly recognised significantly fewer expressions, particularly of fear and anger. There was also a trend for this deficit to be more evident for subtle displays of emotion (50% intensity). Deficits in anger recognition were related specifically to scores on the body dissatisfaction subscale of the EDI. Error analyses revealed that, in comparison to Low EDI scorers, high scorers made significantly more and fear-as-anger errors. Also, a tendency to label anger expressions as sadness was related to body dissatisfaction. Current findings confirm FER deficits in subclinical eating psychopathology and extend these findings to subtle expressions of emotion. Furthermore, this is the first study to establish that these deficits are related to a specific pattern of recognition errors. Impaired FER could disrupt normal social functioning and might represent a risk factor for the development of more severe psychopathology.Item Open Access The influence of non-clinical eating-related psychopathology on the recognition of emotion from static faces and realistic social interactions(Elsevier, 2018-01-31) Wallis, D. J.; Ridout, N.; Sharpe, E.Emotion recognition deficits have consistently been reported in clinical and sub-clinical disordered eating. However, most studies have used static faces, despite the dynamic nature of everyday social interactions. The current aims were to confirm previous findings of emotion recognition deficits in non-clinical disordered eating and to determine if these deficits would be more evident in response to static as compared to dynamic emotional stimuli. We also aimed to establish if these emotion recognition deficits could be explained by comorbid psychopathology (depression, anxiety or alexithymia). Eighty-nine females were assigned to groups based on scores on the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI); high (n=45) and low (n=44). Participants were presented with emotional faces and video clips portraying fear, anger, disgust, sadness, happiness, surprise and neutral affect. As predicted, the high EDI group correctly recognised fewer emotional displays than did the low EDI group. However, this deficit was not more evident for negative as opposed to positive emotions. Furthermore, the deficit was not larger for static stimuli in comparison to dynamic. Overall emotion recognition accuracy was negatively associated with Drive for Thinness, but not Bulimia or Body Dissatisfaction. Importantly, the emotion recognition deficits observed in the high EDI group and that were associated with eating disorder symptoms were independent of depression, anxiety and alexithymia. Findings confirm that even minor elevations in disordered eating are associated with poorer emotion recognition. This is important, as problems in recognition of the emotional displays of others are thought to be a risk factor for clinical eating disorders.Item Open Access The influence of variations in eating disorder-related symptoms on processing of emotional faces in a non-clinical female sample: An eye-tracking study.(Elsevier, 2016-04-23) Sharpe, E.; Wallis, D. J.; Ridout, N.This study aimed to: i) determine if the attention bias towards angry faces reported in eating disorders generalises to a non-clinical sample varying in eating disorder-related symptoms; ii) examine if the bias occurs during initial orientation or later strategic processing; and iii) confirm previous findings of impaired facial emotion recognition in non-clinical disordered eating. Fifty-two females viewed a series of face-pairs (happy or angry paired with neutral) whilst their attentional deployment was continuously monitored using an eye-tracker. They subsequently identified the emotion portrayed in a separate series of faces. The highest (n=18) and lowest scorers (n=17) on the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI) were compared on the attention and facial emotion recognition tasks. Those with relatively high scores exhibited impaired facial emotion recognition, confirming previous findings in similar non-clinical samples. They also displayed biased attention away from emotional faces during later strategic processing, which is consistent with previously observed impairments in clinical samples. These differences were related to drive-for-thinness. Although we found no evidence of a bias towards angry faces, it is plausible that the observed impairments in emotion recognition and avoidance of emotional faces could disrupt social functioning and act as a risk factor for the development of eating disorders.Item Embargo “It's always on the safe list”: Investigating experiential accounts of picky eating in adults(Elsivier, 2018-07-24) Fox, G.; Coulthard, Helen; Williamson, I. R.; Wallis, D. J.Previous research into severely restricted eating for reasons which are not cultural, medical, due to a lack of food or due to concerns about body image has focused predominantly on “picky/fussy eating” in children. Despite evidence that picky eating does continue into adulthood and recognition in the new diagnostic category. Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) that problematically avoidant and restrictive patterns of eating affect people across the lifespan, relatively little is known about the challenges and consequences faced by older adolescents and adults. This research employs qualitative methods to explore the experience of living as an adult with picky eating behaviours. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with thirteen adults who identify as picky eaters and eat a highly limited diet, as determined by a checklist food questionnaire. Data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Two themes are presented in this paper: “Constructions of food” and “Motivators for and barriers to change”. These themes show the importance of how individuals perceive food, their diet and themselves, and implications for clinical practice and future research in light of these findings are considered.Item Metadata only Mealtimes on eating disorder wards: a two study investigation.(Wiley, 2012) Long, S.; Wallis, D. J.; Leung, Newman; Arcelus, Jon; Meyer, CarolineObjective: This research had two aims. First, to assess the current mealtime practices within UK eating disorders units. Second, to investigate staff perspectives of these mealtimes, including their involvement and understanding of patients’ experience. Method: Study 1 involved a survey to assess mealtime protocols across 22 eating disorders units. In Study 2, sixteen semistructured interviews were conducted with staff at three eating disorders units. Results: Between and within-unit variation exist regarding the implementation of mealtimes. Thematic analysis revealed that staff perceived their provision of mealtimes to be influenced by their own interpersonal difficulties created by the meals. Additionally, they perceived that these issues could be aided by forward planning, successful teamwork, and focused staff training. Discussion: There is a need for specialized mealtime implementation training. Furthermore, research is required to evaluate current mealtime practices from patient perspectives and to determine the impact of modified mealtime approaches on treatment outcome.Item Metadata only Promoting Peer Assisted Learning among Students in Further and Higher Education(1996) Donaldson, A. J. M.; Topping, K.J.; Aitchison, R.; Campbell, J.; McKenzie, J.; Wallis, D. J.Item Metadata only Item Metadata only Stimulation of appetite by alcohol.(2001) Hetherington, M. M.; Cameron, F.; Wallis, D. J.; Pirie, L. M.To investigate the effects of alcohol on appetite and food intake, 26 males attended the laboratory on three occasions. On each occasion, they were given a standard breakfast. Visual analog scale ratings of hunger, desire to eat and fullness (appetite ratings) were recorded from before breakfast until their return to the laboratory for lunch. Thirty minutes before lunch, subjects either rested (baseline), were given 330 ml of a no-alcohol lager (264 kJ: no-alcohol condition) or 330 ml of the same lager spiked with 3 units of alcohol (24 g ethyl alcohol; total energy = 969 kJ: alcohol condition). Ratings of appetite were taken before and after the preload or baseline rest period and again before and hourly after lunch. The test meal at lunch consisted of a buffet-style array of foods and chilled water. Ad libitum intake at lunch (excluding energy from alcohol) was significantly higher following alcohol (7301 ± 442 kJ) compared to both baseline (6365 ± 334 kJ) and the no-alcohol conditions (6479 ± 289 kJ). Appetite ratings failed to demonstrate any differences between alcohol and the no-alcohol condition. Total energy intake (including energy from alcohol) was enhanced in the alcohol condition by 30%, suggesting that energy from alcohol is not compensated in the short-term and may even have a stimulatory effect on food intake.Item Metadata only Stress and eating: the effects of ego-threat and cognitive demand on food intake in restrained and emotional eaters.(2004) Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.Restrained and emotional eaters overeat in response to stress. To compare differential effects of cognitive demand and ego-threatening stressors on subsequent chocolate intake, 38 females completed a neutral (control), an ego threatening and an incongruent Stroop colournaming task on three separate occasions. Participants were assigned to four groups based on median-split scores on the restrained and emotional eating scales of the Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire—high restraint/high emotional, high restraint/low emotional, low restraint/high emotional and low restraint/low emotional. Higher response latencies were observed in the incongruent task, confirming its greater cognitive (attentional) demand. Overall intake was enhanced by 23% after ego-threat and 15% after the incongruent Stroop task relative to control. Restraint was associated with greater intake after both ego-threat and the incongruent task than in the control condition. In contrast, emotional eating was associated with greater intake after only the ego-threat, relative to control. A positive association between reaction time and subsequent intake in all conditions for high restraint/low emotional eaters provided support for the limited capacity hypothesis. Enhanced intake in emotional eaters is proposed to relate to escape from self-awareness. These findings demonstrate differential effects of threat and demand on stress-related eating in restrained and emotional eaters.