Mukbang watching in Iran: a brief report validating the Persian version of the mukbang addiction scale and its relationship with disordered eating decisions and habits

Mukbang, an internet-based audiovisual presentation wherein a host engages with the audience while consuming a diverse array of foods, has surfaced as a notable contributor to social media users’ diets. Some users display an inordinate craving for watching these eating shows, a phenomenon known as problematic mukbang watching. Given the high prevalence of eating disorders among Iranians, this study aimed to explore whether excessive mukbang watching could serve as a media-related risk factor for Iranian users’ dysfunctional eating. The Mukbang Addiction Scale (MAS), serving as the primary measure of excessive mukbang consumption, was translated and validated for this study. A convenience sample of 535 Iranian social media users completed the Persian version of MAS (MAS-P) and measures of mindful eating, disordered eating patterns, and food neophobia. The MAS-P was corroborated as unidimensional with quality internal consistency. Problematic mukbang watching was found to be negatively associated with mindful eating and eating self-efficacy, and positively linked with eating disorder symptom severity, food addiction, and grazing. Weekly unhealthy snacking frequency and weekly non-home food consumption frequency were significantly predicted by problematic mukbang watching. There was no significant association between problematic mukbang watching and food neophobia. The findings indicate that problematic mukbang watching may represent an online manifestation of dysfunctional eating patterns and seems to play a role in shaping maladaptive nutritional choices and habits.