Integrating eating disorder and weight gain prevention: a pilot and feasibility trial of INSPIRE

Purpose The current study adapted evidence-based prevention programs to promote positive health behaviors among racially and ethnically diverse young adult women. Two successful programs (The Body Project and the Healthy Weight Intervention) were integrated to evaluate their feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy in reducing risk for both eating pathology and weight gain. Intervention features extended the previous prevention efforts by emphasizing broad appearance ideals to enhance relevancy for women of color and incorporating distress tolerance and emotion regulation skills training. Method Individuals were excluded if they met criteria for an eating disorder diagnosis and/or obesity, as this was a prevention project. 27 young adult women participated ( M age = 18.59; SD = 1.01). The following racial/ethnic groups were represented: 48.1% White, 25.9% Asian, 22.2% Black, and 3.7% Latina. After each meeting, participants completed satisfaction measures and therapists assessed intervention feasibility. Participants also completed comprehensive questionnaires at pretest (baseline), posttest (8 weeks), and 4-week follow-up. Results Descriptive statistics and content analyses of open-ended questions indicated that the intervention was both acceptable and feasible. Hierarchical linear models evaluating within-subject change over time indicated reductions in several risk factors that were sustained at follow-up: eating pathology, appearance dissatisfaction, thin-ideal internalization, restrained eating, negative affect, emotion dysregulation, and fat intake. BMI did not change from pretest to posttest; however, BMI increased from posttest to follow-up (mean weight increase = 0.34 kg). Conclusion Results suggest that a prevention program designed to be more culturally sensitive is feasible and acceptable. Findings provide preliminary support for reducing the risk of eating pathology and promoting positive health behaviors. Level of evidence Time series with intervention, Level IV. Trial registration ClinicalTrails.gov ID: NCT03317587.