A two-stage epidemiological study of abnormal eating attitudes and their prospective risk factors in Polish schoolgirls

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 1021-1032 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Włodarczyk-Bisaga ◽  
Bridget Dolan

SynopsisIn this longitudinal two-stage screening study of abnormal eating attitudes and behaviours in Polish schoolgirls self-report questionnaires (EAT-26) were completed by 747 schoolgirls aged between 14 and 16 years. On the basis of their EAT-26 scores 167 girls were selected for a clinical interview conducted blind to questionnaire scores. No clinical cases of DSM-III-R anorexia or bulimia nervosa were identified, however, there was a point prevalence of 2·34% for subclinical eating disorder and of 28·6% for dieting. Natural history was investigated, repeating the screening and interviews after 10 months. Both the group mean EAT-26 score and the proportion of subclinical cases remained the same at follow-up however, individual girls showed substantial fluctuations over time. On re-screening 11·5% of the sample had moved EAT category (based on scoring below or above the clinical cut-off point). Follow-up interviews showed that 58% (7) of the original subclinical cases were no longer cases while seven girls were ‘new’ subclinical cases. This second stage of the study also aimed to investigate the risk factors for the development of eating disorders. Several family factors distinguished the dieters from non-dieters at the initial stage. Subjects who began dieting between the initial and follow-up interviews had higher Body Mass Index, felt more overweight and had greater discrepancy between their current and ideal weights than the non-dieters. However, analysis of regression revealed no specific risk factors for development of a subclinical syndrome.

1988 ◽  
Vol 33 (9) ◽  
pp. 834-837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Praful Chandarana ◽  
Edward Helmes ◽  
Nancy Benson

A survey of 577 high school students was conducted to assess attitudes toward eating and their relationship to demographic and personality characteristics. Students completed a demographic questionnaire, and Eating Attitude Test (EAT-26) and the Basic Personality Inventory (A-BPI). When a cut-off score of 20 on EAT-26 was applied, overall prevalence of disordered eating attitude was found to be 7.5%. Groups scoring in pathological versus normal ranges showed no significant difference in mean age, socioeconomic status or race. The former group reported significantly shorter height and lower body weight. Of the subjects, 6.06% reported weight below the 10th percentile. This subgroup did not vary from those above the 10th percentile on sociodemographic and psychopathological variables, nor in prevalence of abnormal eating attitudes. Analysis of the A-BPI data showed subjects with abnormal eating attitudes had increased psychopathology in several areas, with greater neurotic tendencies, lower self-esteem and higher levels of deviant thinking and behaviour.


1988 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 615-622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Johnson-Sabine ◽  
Kathryn Wood ◽  
George Patton ◽  
Anthony Mann ◽  
Anthony Wakeling

SynopsisOne thousand and ten unselected London state schoolgirls were screened by questionnaire to identify an ‘at risk’ cohort displaying abnormal eating attitudes and two control cohorts, one with probable general psychiatric morbidity, one without. Members of all cohorts were assessed at interview for the presence of eating disorder and for putative risk factors implicated in the development of anorexia nervosa. A prevalence rate of 0·99 % was detected for clinical eating disorder and 1·78 % for the partial syndrome of eating disorder. Factors specifically associated with abnormal eating attitudes were identified, in particular, current or past overweight, history of amenorrhoea and perceived stress in school and social life. Some commonly accepted risk factors for eating disorders were discovered to be associations with general psychiatric morbidity. These were perceived parental pressure to eat more, taking exercise to lose weight, perceived stress at home and reporting a family history of anxiety or depression. Other well reported putative risk factors for eating disorder, including social class, birth order, age at menarche, obsessional personality and weight related career choice were not associated specifically with abnormal eating attitudes in schoolgirls. These findings represent cross-sectional data at entry into a prospective epidemiological study.


1990 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 383-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. C. Patton ◽  
E. Johnson-Sabine ◽  
K. Wood ◽  
A. H. Mann ◽  
A. Wakeling

SynopsisThe occurrence and course of eating disorder in a large representative population of 15-year-old London schoolgirls has been assessed using a two-stage survey methodology. Attempts to control weight were common and often transient. Dieting was in the great majority of girls found to be a benign practice without progression to more extreme concerns about food and weight. However, a small proportion of dieters did become cases and formed the majority of new cases found at follow-up. The relative risk of dieters becoming cases was eight times that of non-dieters. Many factors conventionally associated with eating disorder were associated more with attempting weight control than caseness. These included pre-morbid personality, pre-morbid obesity and family weight pathology. Other factors, including social class, career choice and psychosexual development, had no association either with attempting weight control or caseness.


2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (S1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
M.J. Soares ◽  
B. Maia ◽  
A.T. Pereira ◽  
A. Gomes ◽  
M. Marques ◽  
...  

Aim:To investigate the role of perfectionism in the development of disordered eating behaviours.Method:382 female university students completed the Hewitt & Flett MPS and the EAT-40 at baseline, one year after (T1) and two years later (T2).Results:Perfectionism at baseline was significantly associated with long-term abnormal eating attitudes/behaviours. Self-Oriented Perfectionism (SOP) and Socially Prescribed Perfectionism (SPP) were significant predictors of disordered eating behaviours. SOP at baseline was predictive of diet concerns, at T1 and T2. Baseline SPP was correlated with overall eating disturbance at T1 and T2. Regression analysis revealed that only SPP was a significant predictor of bulimic behaviours and social pressure to eat at T1, but not at T2.Conclusion:Our findings contribute to a more clear understanding of the association between perfectionism and eating disorders. SOP and SPP were prospectively associated with abnormal eating attitudes/behaviours and SOP was found to be predictive of diet concerns.


1991 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 462-466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas K. Miller ◽  
John E. Morley ◽  
Laurence Z. Rubenstein ◽  
Fern M. Pietruszka

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-86
Author(s):  
Fatma Esra Güneş ◽  
Şule Aktaç ◽  
Dicle Kargin

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between media using habits, frequency and duration, and body mass index on eating attitudes. Material and methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted with female students who received nutrition and dietetics education in Istanbul. A questionnaire consisting of a socio-demographic questionnaire, Eating Attitude Test (EAT-40), and Social Media Attitude Scale was applied to 1248 female volunteers by the face-to-face interview method.Results: It was found that 35.7% of the participants had abnormal eating attitudes and 89.6% showed a positive attitude towards social media. 93.7% of the group with abnormal eating attitudes indicated a positive attitude towards social media, 0.4% had a negative attitude and the difference was statistically significant (p=0.001). It was observed that a significant difference between EAT-40 and thought of an eating problem, having a social media membership, and spending time on social media (p<0.05).Conclusions: Social media have an effect on nutrition dietetics students on abnormal eating attitude; it did not show a significant effect on BMI.


2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (12) ◽  
pp. 2571-2582 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Wild ◽  
K. V. Smith ◽  
E. Thompson ◽  
F. Béar ◽  
M. J. J. Lommen ◽  
...  

BackgroundIt is unclear which potentially modifiable risk factors best predict post-trauma psychiatric disorders. We aimed to identify pre-trauma risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or major depression (MD) that could be targeted with resilience interventions.MethodNewly recruited paramedics (n = 453) were assessed for history of mental disorders with structured clinical interviews within the first week of their paramedic training and completed self-report measures to assess hypothesized predictors. Participants were assessed every 4 months for 2 years to identify any episodes of PTSD and MD; 386 paramedics (85.2%) participated in the follow-up interviews.ResultsIn all, 32 participants (8.3%) developed an episode of PTSD and 41 (10.6%) an episode of MD during follow-up. In all but nine cases (2.3%), episodes had remitted by the next assessment 4 months later. At 2 years, those with episodes of PTSD or MD during follow-up reported more days off work, poorer sleep, poorer quality of life, greater burn-out; and greater weight-gain for those with PTSD. In line with theories of PTSD and depression, analyses controlling for psychiatric and trauma history identified several pre-trauma predictors (cognitive styles, coping styles and psychological traits). Logistic regressions showed that rumination about memories of stressful events at the start of training uniquely predicted an episode of PTSD. Perceived resilience uniquely predicted an episode of MD.ConclusionsParticipants at risk of developing episodes of PTSD or depression could be identified within the first week of paramedic training. Cognitive predictors of episodes of PTSD and MD are promising targets for resilience interventions.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document