An ‘incredibly high’ proportion of children exhibit disordered eating behaviors

A systematic review and meta-analysis of 32 studies found that 22% of children and adolescents have eating disorders, according to results published in JAMA Pediatrics.

Recent studies have shown that admissions for eating disorders in pediatric patients increased at certain times in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Because some children and adolescents with eating disorders may hide the main symptoms of the disease and delay seeking specialist care due to feelings of shame or stigma, it is reasonable to consider eating disorders diet are underdiagnosed and undertreated,” the authors of the new study write.

The authors also clarified the differences between eating disorders and disordered eating behaviors.

“Although these symptoms predict adolescent obesity and eating disorder outcomes 5 years later, it is important to distinguish eating disorders from eating disorders,” they said. writing. “The term eating disorders is often used to describe and identify some of the different eating behaviors that do not necessarily meet the diagnostic criteria for an eating disorder and, therefore, cannot be classified as eating disorders. food itself.”

The authors reviewed eligible studies of children and adolescents aged 6 to 18 who used the Sick, Control, One, Fat, Food, which consists of five yes or no questions about eating behaviors and attitude towards food and weight loss. The 32 studies included 63,181 participants from 16 countries.

According to the review, the overall proportion of children and adolescents with eating disorders was 22.36% (95% CI, 18.84% to 26.09%). Moreover, the proportion was higher in girls (30.03%; 95% CI, 25.61%-34.65%) than in boys (16.98%; 95% CI, 13.46 %-20.81%).

“These high numbers are of concern from a public health perspective and underscore the need to implement eating disorder prevention strategies,” they wrote.