[Study of risk of eating disorders in a representative sample of adolescents]

Abstract

Background and objectives: The aim of this study was to estimate the percentage of adolescents with risk eating behaviours for developing an eating disorder (ED), analyzing the differences in gender, age and body mass index (BMI).

Subject and methods: We used a representative sample of 2,142 adolescents (47.2% boys, 52.8% girls) from different schools in Alicante. The screening procedure was performed using the EAT-40, with a cutoff point of 30, and the BMI was calculated.

Results: 11.2% of adolescents presented risk behaviours of developing an ED, 7.79% were girls and 3.34% boys. Adolescents of 12 years had higher scores on the EAT-40 than other classmates. Teenagers with higher risk eating behaviours had a BMI greater than those with lower scores.

Conclusions: The percentage of girls who presented more risk eating behaviours was lower than previous studies. The age in which these behaviours are manifested, supports the need to develop prevention strategies at younger ages.