More than 4,000 Irish boys between the ages of 12 and 17 years old could have eating disorders, according to the latest results from the landmark "Eating Problems in Irish Children and Adolescents" study.
Professor Fiona McNicholas from Our Lady's Children's Hospital, Crumlin, said in an Irish Medical News article that 2.3 percent of boys in the study scored worryingly high on an eating disorders screening tool.
Of the 3,033 children recruited for the study, 7.5 percent scored higher than 20 on the Eating Disorder Test 26 (EAT-26), which is the most widely used standardized measure of symptoms that are characteristic of eating disorders. The results indicated that 11 percent of girls and 2.3 percent of boys are at risk of having an eating disorder.
In addition, the latest data shows that the perceived onset of puberty is a strong indicator of increased risk of eating disorders. However, the time of puberty appeared to have opposite effects on boys and girls. Girls who perceived the earlier onset of puberty were at the highest risk for developing an eating disorder, while boys with the latest perceived onset of puberty were at the highest risk for disordered eating.
McNicholas said the identification of these new risk factors should alert physicians to the risk of eating disorders in boys with late-onset puberty.
Of the girls who took part in the study, more than 10 percent were found to be at risk of having an eating disorder, one-third of the girls were already on a diet and another 50 percent felt they should be on a diet. More than one-third of girls were concerned about their shape or weight.
McNicholas presented this data at a UK Royal College of Psychiatrists Faculty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry meeting in Dublin last weekend.
(Source: www.imn.ie)
Labels: eating disorder, boys, irish
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