An investigation led by Spanish scientists from the University of Castilla-La Mancha has found that eating behavior disorders affect 22% of minors around the world, a figure that reaches 30% if only one takes into account to the girls. Altered eating behaviors are abnormal behaviors such as binge eating, vomiting, going on a diet to lose weight, exercising too much to try to counteract the intake, or taking laxatives or diuretics.
The research has been based on the analysis of 32 studies carried out in 16 countries using the SCOFF questionnaire as a diagnostic tool and in which 63,181 children and adolescents between the ages of six and 18 have participated. The risk of developing a problem of this type increases with age and with a higher BMI (body mass index). The way they behave is similar to that of patients diagnosed with an eating disorder (TCA), only that in these cases their frequency and intensity are less. The findings have just been published in the scientific journal JAMA Pediatrics.
The international team of researchers led by José Francisco López-Gil, from the University of Castilla-La Mancha, has found that two out of 10 minors show signs of altered eating behaviors, but in the case of girls the percentage rises to 30%. , which Dr. López-Gil attributes to the fact that they could suffer greater stigmatization due to stereotypes and “the influence of the media and social networks, which play an important role in the development of these behaviors”, and points to Instagram, TikTok or Snapchat, as they are networks in which young people display themselves through photos more frequently.
Causes and consequences of eating disorders in childhood
López-Gil explains that the causes of children and adolescents adopting this type of dysfunctional behavior in relation to food are “multifactorial”, and highlights family problems or belonging to a dysfunctional family, having a low socioeconomic level -which is associated with a worse health– and the use of social networks, as possible risk factors for developing an eating disorder. “There are many factors that come into play, there is not just one cause,” he indicates, adding that overweight or obese children show more risk symptoms of altering their eating behaviors, partly due to “social rejection of obesity and Excessive concern with body image.
“We have been seeing an increase in younger and younger children with eating disorders in clinical services and this has been exacerbated by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic”
Researchers have given examples of what is considered disturbed eating behavior: an excessive preoccupation with body weight or physical appearance, the feeling of loss of control over the food that is eaten – not being able to stop eating -, inducing the vomiting, excessive weight loss in a short time (about six kilos in three months), or problems eating normally such as feeling full or sick when eating an adequate amount of food – “perhaps because mentally it is associated with an excess although it does not be”-. These behaviors could be early symptoms of possible pathological eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia.
Suicide and mental health problems are the most serious consequences of EDs, says the researcher, who also associates them with the risk of malnutrition, for which he requests that more resources and mental health professionals be allocated to Primary Care, as well as awareness campaigns to promote healthy dietary habits and lifestyles and for families to pay close attention to the eating patterns and behavior of minors to prevent EDs.
People who present these behaviors during childhood are more likely to develop an eating disorder with more serious long-term consequences, which is why it is so important to detect the problem in children and adolescents. “Fighting the stigma surrounding altered eating behaviors and weight is one of the keys to getting people to ask for help. These results show that the magnitude of this problem can no longer be ignored”, explains Trevor Steward, a researcher at the University of Melbourne who did not participate in the study, in statements to SMC Spain.
For her part, Gemma Sharp, Head of Research on Body Image and Eating Disorders and Senior Clinical Psychologist at Monash University (Australia), has highlighted to SMC Spain that “the proportion of 22% of children and adolescents with altered eating behaviors is very worrying, but sadly not surprising. We have been seeing an increase in younger and younger children with eating disorders in clinical services and this has been exacerbated by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Most of the studies included in this review were published before the start of the pandemic, so 22% may be an underestimate of the current situation in 2023. The study showed that children with a higher BMI apparently had more risk of developing eating disorders. It is possible that these young people experienced discrimination or stigmatization due to their weight from important people in their lives and, therefore, suffered altered eating behaviors in an attempt to lose weight. The weight stigma has to stop being perpetuated at all levels.”
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