An exploration of eating disorders in a Georgian sample

There is debate as to whether eating disorders may be culture-bound. However, accumulating evidence suggests that eating disorders may be found outside of the West, although the precise form of the eating disorder may differ.

There were two aims of this study: (1) to translate and establish the psychometric properties of standard questionnaires to measure eating pathology in a Georgian sample; (2) to use these measures to determine whether cases of eating disorders exist in Georgia.

We held focus groups of various health professionals to establish how eating disorders present in Georgia and to identify groups perceived to be at high risk of having an eating disorder. We obtained translated versions of a number of standardized questionnaires (measuring eating and general psychopathology) from 245 women from these identified high risk groups and a subsample were given a structured clinical interview.

We estimated from the responses to the questionnaires, that as many as 5% may have clinically significant bulimia nervosa, 7% fell in the weight range for anorexia nervosa with a further 7% in the weight range for obesity. We interviewed a sample of the high scoring group which confirmed the presence of clinically significant eating pathology in the majority of those identified as possible cases.

The results of this study suggest there may be women in Georgia with significant eating problems.