Some features of mothers of patients with eating disorders

The aim of this study was to compare some of the characteristics of 50 mothers of patients with an eating disorder (ED) with those of a control group of 30 mothers of non-consulting adolescents. In comparison with the control group, the patients' mothers had higher scores for the bulimic factor of the Eating Attitudes Test-26, more frequent binge eating episodes, more eating disorder symptoms, more depression episodes, a higher incidence of bottle-fed daughters, provoked abortions and poor mother-daughter relationships with their own mothers. We recommend one-to-one diagnostic interviews with patients' mothers at the beginning of consultations.