Waad Alfawaz^1,, Rana W. Barri¹, Rand A. Alhjjy¹, Madawi Aldhwayan¹, Ghadeer S. Aljuraiban¹

Background: Night eating syndrome (NES) is a common disorder observed among not only individuals with obesity but also those with psychological disorders such as de-pression, anxiety, and stress. Identifying an association between NES and stress among young adults can aid in the prevention of obesity and other comorbidities. Objectives: To investigate the association between stress and NES among Saudi students. Methods: The cross-sectional study involved 331 healthy students aged 18 years and above from King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 item questionnaire was used to evaluate stress symptoms among the par-ticipants, while the Night Eating Questionnaire was used to assess eating patterns. Of the 331 participants, 53% exhibited symptoms of NES and 40.5% scored above the cut-off point for stress. Results: Psychological distress, including stress, and NES were significantly positively correlated (P < 0.001). The correlation coefficients for stress, anxiety, and depression were 0.413**, 0.429**, and 0.455**, respectively (P < 0.001), indicating that the levels of night eating and stress, anxiety, and depression were moderately positively correlated. Conclusion: Further research, encompassing different Saudi universities from various regions, is required to confirm the association between NES and stress.

obesity, night eating, psychological distress, stress, weight