In terms of correlations between binge eating and its predictors, both dietary restraint and impulsivity were significantly associated with our measures of binge eating. Notably, however, these correlations were moderate in magnitude (r = .31-.38), indicating that binge eating, impulsivity, and dietary restraint are independent constructs that may show differential interactive associations. However, neither the 5-HT2a receptor nor the 5-HTT genotypes/alleles were associated with MEBS Binge Eating or DEBQ Emotional Eating, suggesting that there are not strong main effects of these genotypes on binge eating. By contrast, both the 5-HT2a genotype/alleles and the 5-HTT genotype/alleles were significantly correlated with impulsivity. Specifically, the presence of the T allele of the 5-HT2a receptor T102C polymorphism and the s allele of the 5-HTTLPR was associated with greater levels of impulsivity. These findings corroborate previous research associating these genes with impulsivity in community samples (e.g., Nomura et al., 2006; Paaver et al., 2007; Sakado et al., 2003).
