Anorexia, bulimia, altered body image. The list of potential eating disorders is extremely long, as are many people who deal with these conditions. According to recent data, in Italy it is estimated that there are 3.5 million people with eating disorders, such as anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, etc. These are numbers that are growing sharply.
But be careful: if you believe that the phenomenon can only affect teenagers who live in families with high economic resources (and with good scholastic preparation), you are wrong. Or rather: it seems that a lower income and education level are associated with a greater probability of developing an eating disorder.
This is according to research published in‘International Journal of Eating Disorderscoordinated by Nora Trompeter of University College London in collaboration with researchers at Copenhagen University Hospital, which analyzed data from 51 studies involving 26,174 adolescents from Western countries in North America, Europe and Australia.
According to recent data from the Ministry of Health, it is estimated that today more than three million Italians suffer from DNA, over 5% of the population, and among these, 8-10% of girls and 0.5-1% of boys suffer from anorexia or bulimia. In recent years, an increase in cases of at least 30-35% and a lowering of the age of onset have been estimated, especially among very young people, girls in particular between 11-12 and 15 years old, and in some cases, even earlier towards 8-9 years old. For this reason, it is essential that those who face these situations can have the assistance of a dedicated multidisciplinary team that includes various professional figures with specific training for developmental age.
Beyond clichés
The study goes to counterbalance a reality that perhaps has long been taken for granted, namely that eating disorders only affect wealthy and educated families. Above all, by going beyond these preconceptions, there is less risk of losing adolescents from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds to the streets, being neglected, subjected to insufficient screening or not recognized as at risk. According to experts, eating disorders are often stereotyped as a problem of wealthy families. But the review reveals that teens from lower-income families and with lower education levels are actually more likely to show signs of eating disorders, not fewer.
“This tells us that eating disorders are a problem that affects all socioeconomic groups and that prevention and treatment efforts must reach families who are at an economic and social disadvantage, who may currently be overlooked”
comments Nora Trompeter in a note.
Family income and risk
In addition to diagnosed anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder, the review also included early symptoms of eating disorders, such as food restriction, fasting, poor body image and feelings of needing to lose weight. Household income showed the strongest and most consistent correlation.
About two-thirds of the studies found that adolescents from low-income families were more likely to have eating disorder symptoms, and no study found the opposite. The analysis also found that adolescents whose parents had a higher level of education were less likely to experience symptoms of an eating disorder. An example? Adolescents whose parents had not attended college were about 25 percent more likely to report symptoms of an eating disorder than adolescents whose parents had attended college.
In short: there are no distinctions in the incidence and prevalence of these problems associated with income or education. And you have to be careful not to lose anyone along the way. Indeed, if we consider these problems almost exclusively for “privileged” people, there is the risk of not recognizing those who may be most in need of support and care.
