Eating disorders among boys increasing

New figures show a worrying increase in the overall prevalence of eating disorders in Ireland, a younger age at onset and a rising incidence in boys.

The most up-to-date, official figures on the incidence of eating disorders suggest that 200,000 Irish people are affected. 

An audit carried out by the Nutrition and Dietetics Department at the Children’s University Hospital (CUH), Temple Street, has reported a 130 per cent increase in the number of patients admitted to the hospital with anorexia nervosa (AN) between 2005 and 2011. The study, published in the February edition of the Irish Medical Journal, also found that the average age of AN patients at presentation had decreased by six months compared to 2002, supporting the view that eating disorders are affecting children at a younger age than previously thought. In the Temple Street study, the average age at presentation was 13.5 years but the authors remarked that the mean age at onset of symptoms was six months prior to seeking treatment.

The study also supports a perceived increase in the prevalence of eating disorders among boys. Previous estimates suggested that 5 per cent of ED patients are male. In the Temple Street study, 30 per cent of patients admitted with AN were boys. While boys tended to present less underweight than their female counterparts, the timescale between onset of symptoms and presentation was greater in male patients.

Ms Marianne O’Reilly, Senior Paediatric Dietician at Temple Streeet and lead author on the study, said the study raises some issues of concern.

Read more in The Medical Independent here