Eating disorders affecting younger girls

In this study of the prevalence of disordered eating attitudes and behaviours among teenaged girls aged 12 to 18, Jennifer Jones and colleagues found that over one-quarter (27%) either had significant symptoms of eating disorders such as binge eating or purging, or both. Of the 1739 girls who completed a standardized questionnaire on eating disorders, 23% reported they were currently dieting, 15% reported binge eating associated with loss of control, 8.2% reported self-induced vomiting and 2.4% reported using diet pills. The authors warn that teenaged girls are also starting to engage in "severely disordered behaviours" at an earlier age. "Our data indicate that an alarming number of Ontario schoolgirls report disordered attitudes about food and weight and unhealthy weight-loss behaviour.

"Twelve percent of girls aged 12-14 years reported binge-eating episodes in the previous month, and almost 7% of this age group reported self-induced vomiting to lose weight," write the authors. They recommend screening for eating disturbances among girls in this age group, particularly those with higher body mass indexes.

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Disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in teenaged girls: a school-based study - J.M. Jones et al Contact: Dr. Jennifer Jones, Research Fellow, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto

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