Bulimia and binge eating in adolescent females: a comparison

The present study compared the following four groups on characteristics commonly associated with eating disorders: bulimics (n = 17) who met the DSM-III criteria for bulimia; severe bingers (n = 16) who binged frequently and experienced negative emotions associated with the binging but did not meet the DSM-III criteria for bulimia; mild bingers (n = 16), who only reported engaging in binge eating; and normals (n = 17), who neither binged, fasted, or purged. A one-way MANOVA comparing the four groups was significant. Post-hoc univariate ANOVAs indicated the bulimics and severe bingers experienced significantly more maladaptive eating attitudes, greater stress, greater depression, and greater discrepancies between their current and ideal weight than mild bingers and normals. Bulimics experienced significantly lower self-esteem than the mild bingers and normals and all three eating disordered groups reported significantly more frequent alcohol use than the normals. Theoretical and diagnostic implications of these findings are discussed.