How do life style factors relate to general health and overweight?

In this study we examined the associations between on the one hand the life style factors: Sports, Alcohol, Nutrition, Overweight and Smoking (SANOS), the eating styles of dietary restraint, external- and emotional eating and on the other hand overweight, energy at work and perceived general health. Using a web-based life style questionnaire, responses were obtained from 3272 employees (1254 women and 2018 men) in a large banking corporation. These data were subjected to principal component factor analysis. In both sexes, the SANOS life style factors loaded on a factor that stood for good general health and energy at work, and that, in women, additionally comprised high dietary restraint. Overweight, in contrast, loaded in both sexes on a factor that comprised: restrained eating, emotional eating (highest loading) and external eating, and, in the women, additionally general health (negative loading) and energy at work (negative loading). It is concluded that the attempt made in life style programs to elevate general health perception and lower body weight may be more successful for the latter if the program is also targeted at improvement of eating behavior.

► Life style programs aim at promoting general health and body weight reduction.
► Life style factors were found to be associated with general health rather than overweight.
► Overweight, in contrast, was associated with restrained eating, emotional eating and external eating.
► Improvement of eating behavior might be more successful than life style training when aiming at body weight reduction.