Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Risk factors for eating disorders in adolescents

A Spanish community-based longitudinal study

  • ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION
  • Published:
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to identify psychopathological, social and family variables that, measured at the age of 13, might predict the development of eating disorders 2 years later, using a standardized interview and controlling the effect of initially abnormal eating behavior.

Method:

At age 13 and 15, 1076 adolescents completed questionnaires for the screening of psychiatric morbidity, abnormal eating attitudes and family dysfunction. Probable cases of eating disorders [159] and 150 controls were assessed with standardized interviews (SCAN).

Results:

Controlling the effect of previous eating psychopathology, pathological body dissatisfaction, measured with the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ), and a negative perception of parental attitudes were predictors of eating disorders 2 years later. Self-esteem was a protective factor for body dissatisfaction.

Conclusions:

Preventive actions should focus on self-esteem as a protective factor for body dissatisfaction, a strong predictor for eating disorders. The significance of family perception should be explored more in detail in future research.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Baños RM, Guillen V (2000) Psychometric characteristics in normal and social phobic samples for a Spanish version of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Psychol Rep 87:269–274

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Calam R, Waller G (1998) Are eating and psychosocial characteristics in early teenage years useful predictors of eating characteristics in early adulthood? A 7-year longitudinal study. Int J Eating Disord 24:351–362

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Castro J, Toro J, Salamero M (1991) The Eating Attitudes Test: Validation of the Spanish version. Psychol Assess 7:175–190

    Google Scholar 

  4. Cervera S, Gual MP, Lasa L, Prat O, Zandio M, Hernández C, Azpilicueta MJ, Elizondo MP, Lacasa C, Riestra M, de la fuente MC, Lahortiga F, de Quesada L (1995) Protocolo de atención a pacientes con trastornos de la conducta alimentaria. Clínica Universitaria de Navarra: Universidad de Navarra. España

  5. Cooley E, Toray T (2001) Body image and personality predictors of eating disorder symptoms during the college years. Int J Eating Disord 30:28–36

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Cooper PJ, Taylor MJ, Cooper Z, Fairburn (1987) The development and validation of the body shape questionnaire. Int J Eating Disord 6:485–494

    Google Scholar 

  7. Gardner RM, Friedman BN, Stark K, Jackson NA (1999) Body size estimations in children six through fourteen: a longitudinal study. Perceptual Mot Skills 88:551–555

    Google Scholar 

  8. Gardner RM, Stark K, Friedman BN, Jackson NA (2000b) Predictors of eating disorder scores in children ages 6 through 14: a longitudinal study. J Psychosom Res 49:199–205

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Gardner RM, Stark K, Friedman BN, Jackson NA (2000a) Predictors of eating disorder scores in children ages 6 through 14: a longitudinal study. J Psychosom Res 49:199–205

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Garner RM, Garfinkel PE (1979) The Eating Attitudes Test: an index of the symptoms of anorexia nervosa. Psychol Med 9:273–279

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Ghaderi A, Scott B (2001) Prevalence, incidence and prospective risk factors for eating disorders. Acta Psychiatr Scand 104:122–130

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Goldberg DP, Hillier VF (1979) A scaled version the General Health Questionnaire. Psychol Med 9:139–145

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Gowers S, Shore A (2001) Development of weight and shape concerns in the aetiology of eating disorders. Br J Psychiatry 179:242

    Google Scholar 

  14. Henderson M, Freeman CPL (1987) A self-rating scale for bulimia The ‘BITE’. Br J Psychiatry 150:18–24

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Johnson JG, Cohen P, Kasen S, Brook JS (2002) Childhood adversities associated with risk for eating disorders or weight problems during adolescence or early adulthood. Am J Psychiatry 159:394–400

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Kernis MH, Grannemann BD, Mathis LC (1991) Stability of Self-Esteem as a Moderator of the Relation between Level of Self-esteem and Depression. J Pers Soc Psychol 61:80–84

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Killen JD, Taylor CB, Hayward C, Haydel, KF, Wilson, DM, Hammer L, Kraemer, H, Blair-Greiner A, Strachowski D (1996) Weight concerns influence the development of eating disorders: a 4-year prospective study. J Consult Clin Psychol 64:936–940

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Kotler LA, Cohen P, Davies M, Walsh BT (2001) Longitudinal relationships between childhood, adolescent, and adult eating disorders. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 40:1434–1440

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Leon GR, Keel PK, Klump KL, Fulkerson JA (1997) The future of risk factor research in understanding the etiology of eating disorders. Psychopharmacol Bull 33:405–411

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Lobo A, Pérez Echevarría MJ, Artal J (1986) Validity of the scaled version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) in a Spanish population. Psychol Med 16:135–140

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Patton GC (1988) The spectrum of eating disorder in adolescence. J Psychosom Res 32:579–584

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Raich RM, Deus J, Muñoz MJ, Pérez O, Requena A (1991) Estudio de actitudes alimentarias en una muestra de adolescentes. Revista de Psiquiatría de la Facultad de Medicina de Barcelona 18:305–315

    Google Scholar 

  23. Rosenberg M (1965) Society and the Adolescent Self Image. Princeton. NJ, Princeton University Press

  24. Ruiz PM, Alonso JP, Velilla M, Lobo A, Martín A, Paumard C, Calvo AJ (1998) Estudio de prevalencia de trastornos de la conducta alimentaria en adolescentes de Zaragoza. Revista de Psiquiatría Infanto-Juvenil 3:148–162

    Google Scholar 

  25. Santonastaso P, Friederici S, Favaro A (1999) Full and partial syndromes in eating disorders: A 1-year prospective study of risk factors among female students. Psychopathology 32:50–56

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Schoemaker (1998) The principles of screening for eating disorders. In: Vandereycken W, Noordenbos G (eds) Studies in Eating Disorders: The Prevention of Eating Disorders. London, The Athlone Press, pp 187–213

  27. Smilkstein G (1979) The family Apgar: a proposal for a family function test and its use by physicians. J Fam Pract 6:1231–1239

    Google Scholar 

  28. Steiner H, Kwan W, Shaffer TG, Walker S, Miller S, Sagar A, Lock (2003) Risk and protective factors for juvenile eating disorders. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 12(Suppl 1):138–146

    Google Scholar 

  29. Steinhausen HC, Winkler C, Meier M (1997) Eating disorders in adolescence in a Swiss epidemiological study. Int J Eating Disord 22:147–151

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Stice E, Hayward C, Cameron RP, Killen JD, Taylor CB (2000) Body-image and eating disturbances predict onset of depression among female adolescents: a longitudinal study. J Abnorm Psychol 109:438–444

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. The McKnight Investigators (2003) Risk Factors for the Onset of Eating Disorders in Adolescent Girls: Results of the McKnight Longitudinal Risk Factor Study. Am J Psychiatry 160:248–254

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Tyrka AR, Waldron I, Graber JA, Brooks-Gunn J (2002) Prospective predictors of the onset of anorexic and bulimic syndromes. Int J Eating Disord 32(3):282–290

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Vazquez-Barquero JL, Gaite L, Artal Simon J (1994) Development and verification of the Spanish version of the “scanning system” psychiatric interview. “Questionnaires for clinical evaluation in neuropsychiatry”. Actas Luso Españolas de Neurología y Psiquiatría 22:109–120

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Wichstrom L (2000b) Psychological and behavioral factors unpredictive of disordered eating: a prospective study of the general adolescent population in Norway. Int J Eating Disord 28:33–42

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Wing JK, Barbor T, Brugha T (1990) SCAN: Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry. Arch Gen Psychiatry 47:589–593

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Wlodarczyk-Bisaga K, Dolan B (1996a) A two-stage epidemiological study of abnormal eating attitudes and their prospective risk factors in Polish schoolgirls. Psychol Med 26:1021–32

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Wood A, Waller G, Gowers S (1994) Predictors of eating psychopathology in adolescent girls. Eur Eating Disord Rev 2:6–13

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Eating Disorders Unit, Service of Psychiatry, Ciudad Real Hospital, Ronda del Carmen s/n, Ciudad Real, Spain

    Luis Beato-Fernández M. D., Ph. D., Teresa Rodríguez-Cano M. D., Antonia Belmonte-Llario R. N. & Cristóbal Martínez-Delgado M. D.

  2. Carretera de Valdepeñas, 5 Portal 3, 4°, B 13004—Ciudad Real, Spain

    Luis Beato-Fernández M. D., Ph. D.

Authors
  1. Luis Beato-Fernández M. D., Ph. D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Teresa Rodríguez-Cano M. D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Antonia Belmonte-Llario R. N.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Cristóbal Martínez-Delgado M. D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Beato-Fernández, L., Rodríguez-Cano, T., Belmonte-Llario, A. et al. Risk factors for eating disorders in adolescents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 13, 287–294 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-004-0407-x

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-004-0407-x

Key words

Search

Navigation