Abstract
Background/Objectives
Ostracism may lead to increased food intake, yet it is unclear whether greater reactivity to ostracism contributes to higher body mass index (BMI). We investigated whether children who exhibited greater stress to social exclusion subsequently consume more energy and whether this predicts BMI 6- and 18-months later.
Subjects/Methods
Children (8.5 years-old) (N = 262, males = 50.4%; Chinese = 58.4%) completed a laboratory-based manipulation of social exclusion (the Cyberball task) prior to an ad-libitum snack. Heart rate variability (HRV) was measured during the inclusion and exclusion conditions and proportionate changes were calculated as a physiological measure of exclusion-related stress. Social anxiety and social-emotional assets were also measured as moderators.
Results
Greater stress (as measured physiologically or by self-report) did not directly, or indirectly via energy intake, predict later BMI (at 9- and 10-years). However, among children reporting higher social anxiety, greater stress as measured by proportionate changes in HRV was associated with increased energy intake (B = 532.88, SE = 226.49, t(255) = 2.35, [CI95 = 86.85,978.92]). A significant moderated mediation was also observed (index: (b = 0.01, bootSE = 0.01, [CI95 = 0.001, 0.036]), such that among children reporting higher social anxiety, greater stress from social exclusion predicted increased energy intake from a subsequent snack, which in turn predicted higher BMI 1.5 years later.
Conclusion
This prospective study suggests that a pattern of greater snack intake in response to heightened vulnerability to the effects of ostracism may contribute to increases in child BMI scores.
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Data availability
All materials and data are not in the public domain but can be requested by contacting the corresponding authors. The design and analysis plans were not preregistered.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Ang Li Ting for their assistance with data management and Darren Jeffian Wijaya for their assistance with data curation. We would also like to thank and acknowledge the wider GUSTO study group and research assistants, please see supplementary materials and [37] for all members names.
Funding
The study is supported by the National Research Foundation (NRF) under the Open Fund-Large Collaborative Grant (OF-LCG; MOH-000504) administered by the Singapore Ministry of Health’s National Medical Research Council (NMRC) and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of the A*STAR. In Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2025 (RIE2025), GUSTO is supported by funding from the NRF’s Human Health and Potential (HHP) Domain, under the Human Potential Programme. BKC’s contribution to this manuscript was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD009004-01656312).
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Conceptualization: AEP, RT, BFPB, BKC. Methodology: JYT, YSC, MM, KHT, FY, BFPB, BKC. Investigation: BC, FK, RN, JYP. Resources: JYT, YSC, MM, KHT, FY, BFPB, BKC. Data Curation: AEP, RT, BC, FK, RN, JYP, CHYT. Formal Analysis: AEP, RT. Writing – Original Draft: AEP, RT. Writing – Review and Editing: AEP, RT, BC, FK, RN, JYP, CHYT, JYT, MM, BFPB, BKC. Project administration: BC, FK, RN, JYT.
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Pink, A.E., Teo, R., Chua, B. et al. The effects of acute social ostracism on subsequent snacking behavior and future body mass index in children. Int J Obes 48, 867–875 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-024-01489-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-024-01489-4