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Eating disorders are frequent among type 2 diabetic patients and are associated with worse metabolic and psychological outcomes: results from a cross-sectional study in primary and secondary care settings

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Abstract

Aims

Data regarding the prevalence of eating disorders (ED) and their influence on clinical outcomes among patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) are scarce. Our aim is to investigate the frequency of positive screening for ED, specifically binge eating disorder (BED), in a T2DM sample and analyze whether there are any differences among T2DM subjects with a positive screening for ED or BED.

Methods

Three hundred and twenty subjects with T2DM were recruited randomly. All participants were evaluated for the presence of ED by completing the “Eating Attitudes Test-26” (EAT-26). In addition, the “Questionnaire of Eating and Weight Patterns–Revised” (QEWP-R) for the screening of BED was also implemented. Sociodemographic, clinical and biochemical parameters were also recorded.

Results

According to EAT-26, 14 % of subjects screened positive for ED. Regarding QEWP-R, 16 % had a positive screening for ED, with BED having a frequency of 12.2 %, being the most prevalent one. There was a positive correlation between the scores obtained with the EAT-26 and the Beck Depression Inventory (p = 0.0014). Patients with BED were younger (57.5 ± 11.1 vs 63.3 ± 10.3 years; p = 0.004), with a lesser T2DM duration (8.5 ± 6.1 vs 12.1 ± 9.6 years; p = 0.002). Weight and BMI among subjects with BED were greater (89.1 ± 1.3 vs 82.4 ± 16.7 kg; p = 0.04 and 39.4 ± 10.3 vs 30.7 ± 5.5 kg/m2; p = 0.01). The frequency of subjects with one admission related to T2DM or any other condition during the last year was higher (10 vs 3 %; p = 0.04 and 33 vs 21 %; p = 0.01).

Conclusions

ED among T2DM are frequent. Due to their deleterious effect on different metabolic and psychological outcomes, they should be diagnosed promptly, especially BED.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported by a grant from Sanofi Aventis.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical standard

The authors have followed the rules of good scientific practice.

Human and Animal Rights

All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2008.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all patients for being included in the study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Endocrinology and Nutrition Department, Hospital Son LLàtzer, University Institute of Health Sciences Research (IUNICS) and Health Research Institute of Palma (IdISPa), Ctra, Manacor km 4, 07198, Palma de Mallorca, Baleares, Spain

    Joana Nicolau, Pilar Sanchís, Luisa Ayala, Ivana Zubillaga & Lluís Masmiquel

  2. Diabetes and Metabolism Research Unit, Vall d’Hebron Research Institute and Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (CIBERDEM), ISCIII, Barcelona, Spain

    Rafael Simó

  3. Hormonal Laboratory Department, Hospital Son Llàtzer, Palma de Mallorca, Spain

    Regina Fortuny

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  1. Joana Nicolau
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  2. Rafael Simó
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  3. Pilar Sanchís
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Correspondence to Joana Nicolau.

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Nicolau, J., Simó, R., Sanchís, P. et al. Eating disorders are frequent among type 2 diabetic patients and are associated with worse metabolic and psychological outcomes: results from a cross-sectional study in primary and secondary care settings. Acta Diabetol 52, 1037–1044 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00592-015-0742-z

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