Dieting behavior and eating attitudes in Israeli children

Using an Israeli school-age group, this study replicates and extends the age group of Maloney et al.'s (Pediatrics, 84, 482-489, 1989) study of American schoolchildren's abnormal eating attitudes and behaviors. Maloney's Children's Eating Attitudes Test (ChEAT) and a Demographic and Dieting Questionnaire (DDQ) were given to 186 students from Grades 3 to 6 and to 290 students from Grades 7 to 11. In Grades 3-11, 54% of students expressed a desire to lose weight and 41.6% showed behaviors aimed toward losing weight. These attitudes and behaviors were already evident in Grades 3-6. Of this group, 8.8% had ChEAT scores > or = 20 (a possible at-risk indicator of anorexia), similar to the findings of Maloney et al. Marked gender differences in the at-risk index emerged in Grades 7-11: girls, 16.3%; boys, 1.5%. Starting at Grade 8, an exacerbation was noted in girls', in contrast to boys', preoccupation with thinness and weight-losing behaviors. DDQ items were found to identify at-risk groups in Grades 5-7 and 8-11. Issues were raised concerning cross-cultural studies and strategies for timing preventative interventions.