Eating disorders among adolescents: patterns and prevalence

The purpose of this study was to (a) estimate the prevalence of disordered eating habits among adolescents; and (b) examine relationships between bingeing -dieting and feelings of psychosocial constraint. Disordered eating was defined as bingeing , highly restrictive dieting, emotional eating, or purging. A 71-item questionnaire was completed by 2,004 high school students. Disordered eating, as a distinct syndrome of behaviors, was found in 2% of all subjects. Seven percent of all subjects (11% of all females) were classified as emotional eaters. The prevalence (once a week or more often) of individual behaviors ranged widely: Bingeing = 20%, purging = 5%, feeling out of control about food = 27%. Factor analyses indicated that bingeing -dieting as a cycle was not a major behavioral pattern among subjects. Dieting vs. uncontrollable eating emerged as separate constellations of behaviors. Dieting was related to endorsement of regulation and constraint. Dieting and compulsive eating were both related to feelings of failure.