Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The mediating effect of daily nervousness and irritability on the relationship between soft drink consumption and aggressive behaviour among adolescents

International Journal of Public Health volume 60, pages 699–706 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

Objectives

This study investigated whether soft drink consumption is related to fighting and bullying behaviour among school-aged children and whether nervousness and irritation mediated this relationship.

Methods

The data on 7583 adolescents aged 11–15 years from the Slovak part of the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) study 2010 were analysed. Self-reported soft drink intake, bullying, fighting, nervousness, irritability and confounding variables were analysed using logistic regressions. To assess the potential mediation of daily nervousness and irritability on the association between soft drink consumption and aggressive behaviour, we used Sobel tests.

Results

Adolescents’ daily soft drink consumption was associated with bullying and fighting, and these relationships were partially mediated by nervousness and irritability. Adjustment of the analyses on gender, age and family affluence did not change the estimates.

Conclusions

Adolescents’ daily soft drink consumption was associated with negative mood deviations such as nervousness and irritability and with aggressive behaviour in the form of bullying and fighting. Our findings provide new evidence about soft drink consumption-related risks and thus can contribute to the preventive actions aimed at reducing them.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1

References

  • Basu S, McKee M, Galea G, Stuckler D (2013) Relationship of soft drink consumption to global overweight, obesity, and diabetes: a cross-national analysis of 75 countries. Am J Public Health 103:2071–2077

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Benton D (2007) The impact of diet on anti-social, violent and criminal behaviour. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 31:752–774

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brener ND, Collins JL, Kann L, Warren CW, Williams BI (1995) Reliability of the youth risk behavior survey questionnaire. Am J Epidemiol 141:575–580

  • Caprara GV, Paciello M, Gerbino M, Cugini C (2007) Individual differences conducive to aggression and violence: trajectories and correlates of irritability and hostile rumination through adolescence. Aggressive Behav 33:359–374

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Currie C et al (2012) Social determinants of health and well-being among young people. Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study. In: Currie C (eds) International report from the 2009/2010 survey. Copenhagen, WHO Regional Office for Europe (Health Policy for Children and Adolescents, no. 6)

  • DeWall CN, Deckman T, Gailliot MT, Bushman BJ (2011) Sweetened blood cools hot tempers: physiological self-control and aggression. Aggressive Behav 37:73–80

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasselkvist A, Johansson A, Johansson A (2014) Association between soft drink consumption, oral health and some lifestyle factors in Swedish adolescents. Acta Odontol Scand 72:1039–1046

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Haugland S, Wold B (2001) Subjective health complaints in adolescence—reliability and validity of survey methods. J Adolesc 24:611–624

  • Høstmark AT (2010) The Oslo Health Study: soft drink intake is associated with the metabolic syndrome. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 35:635–642

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kristjansson AL, Sigfusdottir ID, Frost SS, James JE (2013) Adolescent Caffeine Consumption and Self-Reported Violence and Conduct Disorder. J Youth Adolesc 42:1053–1062

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lien L, Lien N, Heyerdahl S, Thoresen M, Bjertness E (2006) Consumption of Soft drinks and hyperactivity, mental distress, and conduct problems among adolescents in Oslo, Norway. Am J Public Health 96:1815–1820

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Martin CA, Cook C, Woodring JH, Burkhardt G, Guenthner G, Omar HA, Kelly TH (2008) Caffeine use: association with nicotine use, aggression, and other psychopathology in psychiatric and pediatric outpatient adolescents. ScientificWorldJournal 8:512–516

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Naska A, Bountziouka V, Trichopoulou A (2010) Soft drinks: time trends and correlates in twenty-four European countries. A cross-national study using the DAFNE (Data Food Networking) databank. Public Health Nutr 13:1346–1355

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Olafsdottir S, Eiben G, Prell H, Hense S, Lissner L, Mårild S, Reisch L, Berg C (2014) Young children’s screen habits are associated with consumption of sweetened beverages independently of parental norms. Int J Public Health 59:67–75

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Saravis S, Schachar R, Zlotkin S, Leiter LA, Anderson GH (1990) Aspartame: effects on learning, behavior, and mood. Pediatrics 86:75

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schnohr CW, Makransky G, Kreiner S, Torsheim T, Hofmann F, De Clercq B, Elgar FJ, Currie C (2013) Item response drift in the family affluence scale: a study on three consecutive surveys of the health behaviour in school-aged children (HBSC) survey. Measurement (02632241) 46:3119–3126

  • Shi Z, Taylor AW, Wittert G, Goldney R, Gill TK (2010) Soft drink consumption and mental health problems among adults in Australia. Public Health Nutr 13:1073–1079

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sobel ME (2008) Identification of causal parameters in randomized studies with mediating variables. J Educ Behav Stat 33:230–251

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solberg ME, Olweus D (2003) Prevalence estimation of school bullying with the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Aggressive Behav 29:239–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solnick SJ, Hemenway D (2012) The ‘Twinkie Defense’: the relationship between carbonated non-diet soft drinks and violence perpetration among Boston high school students. Inj Prev 18:259–263

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Solnick SJ, Hemenway D (2014) Soft drinks, aggression and suicidal behaviour in US high school students. Inj Control Saf Promot 21:266–273

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suglia SF, Solnick S, Hemenway D (2013) Soft drinks consumption is associated with behavior problems in 5-year-olds. J Pediatr 163:1323–1328

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tandel KR (2011) Sugar substitutes: health controversy over perceived benefits. J Pharmacol Pharmacother 2:236–243

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • te Velde SJ, Singh A, Chinapaw M, De Bourdeaudhuij I, Jan N, Kovacs E, Bere E, Vik FN, Bringolf-Isler B, Manios Y, Moreno L, Brug J (2014) Energy balance related behaviour: personal, home- and friend-related factors among schoolchildren in europe studied in the ENERGY-project. PLoS One 9:1–15

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van den Eeden SK, Koepsell TD, Longstreth WTJ, van Belle G, Daling JR, McKnight B (1994) Aspartame ingestion and headaches: a randomized crossover trial. Neurology 44:1787–1793

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vereecken CA, Maes L (2003) A Belgian study on the reliability and relative validity of the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children food-frequency questionnaire. Public Health Nutr 6:581–588

  • Vereecken CA, Inchley J, Subramanian SV, Hublet A, Maes L (2005) The relative influence of individual and contextual socio-economic status on consumption of fruit and soft drinks among adolescents in Europe. Eur J Public Health 15:224–232

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vereecken CA, Rossi S, Giacchi MV, Maes L (2008) Comparison of a short food-frequency questionnaire and derived indices with a seven-day diet record in Belgian and Italian children. Int J Public Health 53:297–305

  • Verzeletti C, Maes L, Santinello M, Vereecken CA (2010) Soft drink consumption in adolescence: associations with food-related lifestyles and family rules in Belgium Flanders and the Veneto Region of Italy. Eur J Public Health 20:312–317

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vessey J, Strout TD, Difazio RL, Walker A (2014) Measuring the youth bullying experience: a systematic review of the psychometric properties of available instruments. J Sch Health 84:819–843

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work was partially supported by the Research and Development Support Agency under Contract No. APVV 0032-11, by the Scientific Grant Agency of the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Reg. No. 1/0895/14, and was also partially funded within the framework of the project “Social determinants of health in socially and physically disadvantaged and other groups of population” of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports in Czech Republic CZ.1.07/2.3.00/20.0063’.

Compliance with ethical standards

The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Medical Faculty at the P. J. Safarik University in Kosice. Parents were informed about the study via the school administration and could opt out if they disagreed with their child’s participation. Participation in the study was fully voluntary and anonymous with no explicit incentives provided for participation.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School Kosice Institute for Society and Health, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Health Psychology, P. J. Safarik University, Trieda SNP 1, 040 11, Kosice, Slovakia

    Jana Holubcikova, Peter Kolarcik, Andrea Madarasova Geckova, Sijmen A. Reijneveld & Jitse P. van Dijk

  2. Department of Health Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, P. J. Safarik University, Kosice, Slovakia

    Jana Holubcikova, Peter Kolarcik & Andrea Madarasova Geckova

  3. Olomouc University Society and Health Institute, Palacky University Olomouc, Olomouc, Czech Republic

    Peter Kolarcik, Andrea Madarasova Geckova & Jitse P. van Dijk

  4. Department of Community and Occupational Medicine, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Sijmen A. Reijneveld & Jitse P. van Dijk

Authors
  1. Jana Holubcikova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Peter Kolarcik
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Andrea Madarasova Geckova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Sijmen A. Reijneveld
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Jitse P. van Dijk
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jana Holubcikova.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Holubcikova, J., Kolarcik, P., Madarasova Geckova, A. et al. The mediating effect of daily nervousness and irritability on the relationship between soft drink consumption and aggressive behaviour among adolescents. Int J Public Health 60, 699–706 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0707-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0707-6

Keywords

search

Navigation