In fact, research shows keeping a food diary is one of the most effective weight-loss strategies. Without recording your food intake, it can be easy to overeat and often takes longer to reach your goals. That nearly one-third of men perceived MFP as a factor contributing to their disordered eating highlights the possible utility of enquiring about the use of calorie-tracking apps when screening and assessing for eating disorder symptoms in men.One of the main reasons tracking is so useful is people aren’t great at remembering or estimating what and how much they’ve eaten, research finds. MFP use also predicted unique variance in global attitudinal symptoms after controlling for eating disorder behaviours, impairment, and demographics.

MFP users reported significantly higher levels of attitudinal (dichotomous thinking, shape, weight, and eating concerns) and behavioural (binge eating, dietary restraint) eating disorder symptoms and psychosocial impairment than non-users. Nearly 40% of users perceived MFP as a factor contributing to disorder eating symptoms to some extent. Around half (56%) of the sample reported having used MFP. Cross-sectional data were analysed from 122 male participants ( M age = 28.4, SD = 8.93) recruited primarily through fitness-related social media sites. Thus, we aimed to estimate MFP usage and examine its association with eating disorder symptoms and psychosocial impairment in a male sample.

However, whether these associations exist additionally in a male-only sample has not been tested. Preliminary research has documented associations between MFP use and eating disorder symptoms in women with eating disorders and in undergraduate students.

Although MFP has the potential to be a cheap and efficient weight-loss tool, concerns that MFP could trigger, maintain, or exacerbate eating disorder symptoms have been raised. My Fitness Pal (MFP) is a calorie-tracking smartphone application that is gaining popularity worldwide.

Fitness pal