[Study of eating habits in a female population comparing groups with and without food-related diseases]

To analyze female subjects in the rural setting to detect food-related disorders and factors associated with these. To isolate these factors and prevent the development of food-related disorders in Primary Health Care. Also to assess continuity in the alterations in the general, sub-clinical and bulimic populations. SCOPE AND SUBJECTS: 127 women with absence of dysfunctions: 57 sub-clinical and 63 bulimics, all from south-western Spain.

Those adolescents at risk of dysfunctions would present positive results in pathological personality traits; therefore, their identification in Primary Health Care would avoid the transition to complete forms and would be favour the theory of the continuum.

Significant differences were found between sub-clinical and bulimic women for mean age and age of onset of eating-related difficulties. Subjects without eating-related dysfunctions have a lower body mass index (BMI) than sub-clinical ones and the latter have less than bulimic subjects, both now and in the past. The objective and subjective history of excess weight was recorded for all three populations, together with eating-related behaviour and the various symptoms suggesting personality disorders, and data on their consumption of toxic substances.

In our sample, 30% of the population obtained scores above the cut-off value in the two scales used, so they could be considered at risk for having food-related dysfunctions and it is necessary to take action at the level of Primary Health Care, as it is in the transition from childhood to adolescence that diets are begun to be followed because of an excessive assessment of weight and it is in this sphere that early action can be taken.