Teen eating disorders fueled by anxiety
Eating disorder symptoms are only temporary for many adolescents, according to the results of a self-reported survey conducted in Finland. However, among teens with persistent or recurring symptoms, anxiety appears to be an underlying factor. The researchers followed 372 boys and girls aged15 to 17 for a year to determine whether certain factors could help identify individuals who would have more long-lasting eating problems. A survey was administered at study entry and again one year later. At the initial assessment, 13 per cent of the study participants reported having some eating disorder symptoms on the first or second survey, while five percent reported symptoms on both surveys. While five times as many girls as boys had persistent eating disorder symptoms, the proportion of boys who had the symptoms at just one point in time was larger, with just twice as many girls as boys. The students who reported eating disorder symptoms at both time points were more likely than their peers to also have several other psychological and health problemss.