Eating disorders and weight problems

Abstract

Introduction Adolescence is a time of enormous change in weight and eating. Average weight gain during puberty is 14 kg for girls and 15 kg for boys, with marked differences in body shape between the sexes becoming evident. About 40% of girls (25% of boys) begin dieting in adolescence. Reported dieting may often reflect dissatisfaction with their body rather than actual calorie restriction. Six to 12 per cent of adolescents choose to become vegetarian, giving them increased independence from family eating patterns. View this table: In this window In a new window Prevalence of eating behaviours and eating problems in adolescence in United Kingdom Eating disorders, anorexia nervosa, and bulimia nervosa, are characterised by morbid preoccupation with weight and shape and manifest through distorted or chaotic eating behaviour. This behaviour differentiates these disorders from other types of psychological problems associated with abnormal eating behaviour—such as extreme faddy (selective) eating and various types of food phobia—and from obesity, in which primary psychological mechanisms are rarely implicated or are part of a more complex picture. View this table: In this window In a new window Risk factors for developing eating disorder in adolescence