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Anxiety as a mediator in the relationship of perceived stress and social support with emotional eating in female university teachers

Saintila J.; Geraldo-Campos L.A.; Oblitas-Guerrero S.M.; Távara G.L.; Lizarraga-De-Maguiña I.G.; López-López E.; Calizaya-Milla Y.E. · BMC Public Health (2026) · DOI: 10.1186/s12889-025-25677-7

Resumen

Background: Emotional eating is increasingly recognized as a significant risk factor for both physical and psychological health, especially in academic settings where work-related stress and social demands are high. Despite its importance, the role of anxiety as a potential mediator in these associations has been scarcely examined in the Latin American context, and even less so among female university teachers. Objective: This study aimed to examine the relationships among social support, perceived stress, and emotional eating, considering the mediating role of anxiety in female university teachers. Methods: A total of 580 female teachers participated in the study and completed standardized instruments to assess anxiety, perceived social support, emotional eating, and perceived stress. Mediation analyses were conducted using a structural equation modeling approach with the Diagonally Weighted Least Squares estimator. Results: Anxiety had a positive and significant direct effect on emotional eating (β = 0.285, p <.001), while social support exhibited a negative and significant direct effect (β = − 0.087, p =.032). Additionally, anxiety acted as a mediator, transmitting the effect of perceived stress (β = 0.056, p <.001) and social support (β = − 0.074, p <.001) on emotional eating. The final model explained 11.5% of the variance in emotional eating and 11.1% of the variance in anxiety. Conclusion: These findings provide novel evidence in a female and Latin American academic context, underscoring the importance of integrating emotional and social variables in the approach to eating behavior. © The Author(s) 2025.

Instituciones: Universidad Tecnológica del Perú; Universidad Peruana Unión; Universidad Señor de Sipán