{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T05:01:34Z","timestamp":1787029294480,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":30,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"16","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,16]],"date-time":"2026-08-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1786838400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Disordered eating behaviours are increasingly common among young adults, yet nutrition-focused, region-specific data from Romania and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) remain scarce. We characterised nutritional patterns, weight-control practices, disordered-eating indicators, body image, and psychosocial factors among Romanian young adults and tested how these differed across body mass index (BMI) categories. Methods: In a cross-sectional online survey (March\u2013April 2026), 753 Romanian adults aged 18\u201330 years (93.5% female) completed a 30-item questionnaire. Self-reported anthropometric measurements were classified using WHO BMI cutoffs. Prevalences (with Wilson 95% confidence intervals [CIs]) were compared across BMI categories using the chi-square test, and multivariable logistic regression, adjusted for age and sex, estimated odds ratios (ORs). Results: Most participants were normal weight (59.1%); 11.6% were underweight, 29.3% were overweight or obese, and 86.3% were omnivorous. Dietary restriction (57.4%) and physical exercise (46.7%) were the leading weight-control methods; self-induced vomiting (6.4%) and medication (4.5%) were less frequent. Lifetime compulsive\/emotional eating was reported by 50.1%, current stress-related eating by 49.1%, and guilt after eating by 66.1%. Lifetime night eating reached 31.9% (current, 12.9%). Body dissatisfaction (36.1% \u201cnot at all satisfied\u201d), difficulty looking in the mirror (66.7%) and self-reported stress (82.2%) were widespread. In adjusted models, dietary restriction, emotional eating and guilt after eating rose steeply and monotonically with BMI (overweight\/obesity vs. normal weight: aOR 2.34, 2.49 and 2.73, respectively; all p &lt; 0.001), whereas current night eating and frequent self-weighing did not differ across BMI categories (p = 0.92 and p = 0.82). Dietary restriction increased from 24.1% in underweight to 55.5% in normal-weight and 74.2% in overweight\/obesity participants; corresponding gradients were also observed for emotional eating and food-related guilt. Conclusions: In this predominantly female, largely urban online convenience sample of Romanian young adults, self-reported behavioural risk indicators related to disordered eating were common. Restriction, emotional eating and food-related guilt increased with BMI, whereas night eating and self-weighing showed no clear BMI gradient. These findings should be interpreted cautiously and should not be generalised to Romanian young men or rural populations without confirmation in more representative samples.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu18162677","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T10:04:36Z","timestamp":1786961076000},"page":"2677","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Self-Reported Disordered Eating and Weight-Control Behaviours Across BMI Categories in Romanian Young Adults: A Cross-Sectional Online Convenience Survey"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-7887-2509","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alexandru","family":"Mischie","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Doctoral School, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7632-5328","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Viorel","family":"Jinga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Medicine, \u201cCarol Davila\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aniela-Roxana","family":"Nodi\u021bi-Cuc","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Surgical Oncology, \u201cCarol Davila\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3852-9060","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ramona Amina","family":"Popovici","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Management and Communication in Dental Medicine (Department I), Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Timi\u0219oara, 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2585-2632","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Diana","family":"Marian","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, \u201cVasile Goldi\u0219\u201d Western University of Arad, 94\u201396 Revolu\u021biei Blvd., 310025 Arad, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2963-6793","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gabriela Elena","family":"Strete","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychiatry, \u201cGeorge Emil Palade\u201d University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of T\u00e2rgu Mure\u0219, 540142 T\u00e2rgu Mure\u0219, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-4581-8487","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andreea Mihaela","family":"Kis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Management and Communication in Dental Medicine (Department I), Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Timi\u0219oara, 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alexandra","family":"Enache","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Discipline of Legal Medicine, Bioethics, Deontology and Medical Law, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Timi\u0219oara, Eftimie Murgu Sq., 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Laria-Maria","family":"Trusculescu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Management and Communication in Dental Medicine (Department I), Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Timi\u0219oara, 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anca Evelina","family":"Bolborea","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Timi\u015f County Emergency Clinical Hospital \u201cPius Br\u00eenzeu\u201d, Liviu Rebreanu Bvld. 156, 300723 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0497-0405","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Calin","family":"Muntean","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department III\u2014Functional Sciences, Medical Informatics and Biostatistics, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Norina Consuela","family":"Forna","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Implantology, Removable Prostheses and Dental Prostheses Technology, Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cGrigore T. Popa\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Ia\u0219i, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Liana","family":"Dehelean","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neuroscience Department, Faculty of Medicine, \u201cVictor Babe\u0219\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timi\u0219oara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1402","DOI":"10.1093\/ajcn\/nqy342","article-title":"Prevalence of Eating Disorders over the 2000\u20132018 Period: A Systematic Literature Review","volume":"109","author":"Galmiche","year":"2019","journal-title":"Am. J. Clin. 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BMC Public Health, 14.","DOI":"10.1186\/1471-2458-14-430"}],"container-title":["Nutrients"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2072-6643\/18\/16\/2677\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T10:16:18Z","timestamp":1786961778000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2072-6643\/18\/16\/2677"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,16]]},"references-count":30,"journal-issue":{"issue":"16","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8]]}},"alternative-id":["nu18162677"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/nu18162677","relation":{},"ISSN":["2072-6643"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2072-6643","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,16]]}}}