EMOTIONAL STATE AND EATING BEHAVIOR OF PEOPLE WITH GASTROENTEROLOGICAL DISEASES

The article presents the results of the study of the emotional state and eating behavior of people with digestive diseases. The topicality of the issue is proved by a significant increase in the diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, especially among the ablebodied population. The development of complications in clinical forms of gastrointestinal diseases is supposed to be interrelated with the negative emotional states such as anxiety and depression. According to WHO, on average, 40% of people with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract have problems with eating behavior as well (it is difficult for them to follow a dietary regime, while the course and outcome of the disease depends on adherence to the diet recommended by the doctor). The aim of the empirical study was to study the peculiarities of eating behavior and emotional state of people with gastroenterological diseases. In order to maintain the representativeness of the sample, the research involved people treated in inpatient care units. The study was conducted in the Samara region, in the city of Togliatti, on the basis of the inpatient department of the Togliatti City Clinical Hospital No. 5. It involved 36 people with gastrointestinal diseases of different clinical stages. Spielberger State -Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT26) and the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire van Strien (DEBQ) were applied in the research work. The obtained results of psychological diagnostics allowed us to conclude that the majority of in-patients with gastroenterological diseases showed a high level of state and trait anxiety, and moderate and severe depression. Patients limit themselves in nutrition during inpatient treatment, however, they react strongly to external stimuli, the view and smell of food. Correlation analysis has shown that there are significant correlations of personal anxiety and depression in people with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. There is also a significant correlation between the state anxiety and emotionogenic eating behavior. The study has practical application, the data obtained can be taken into account in the preparation and implementation of programs of psychological education and prevention of the development of eating disorders both for people with gastroenterological diseases and for other population groups.