Abused Girls at Risk of Later Eating Disorders

Women who were physically abused as children are twice as likely as other women to suffer from an eating disorder, new study findings show.

Women who were physically abused as children are twice as likely as other women to suffer from an eating disorder, new study findings show. Researchers at Harvard Medical School found that among 732 women between the age of 36 and 44, those who said they were physically abused in childhood were at twice the risk of having either a full-blown eating disorder or at least some symptoms of one. The risk was even greater among women who were abused both physically and sexually as girls, according to findings published in the medical journal Epidemiology. Childhood abuse has long been thought a risk factor for eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. Abuse can make victims feel powerless, the study authors note, and eating disorders are thought to arise, in part, from a desire to take control of one aspect of life. Most studies, however, have focused on the role of sexual abuse in eating disorder risk, according to the Harvard team. Dr. Bernard L. Harlow and associates surveyed women on whether they ever suffered physical or sexual abuse as children. Abuse included actual assault as well as the fear of being abused or seeing a family member victimized. Assessments for anorexia, bulimia or binge-eating disorder showed that overall, 102 women had some symptoms, while 49 met the criteria doctors use to diagnose the disorders. Those who were physically abused as girls were twice as likely as those reporting no abuse to have an eating disorder or some symptoms of one. These risks were three to four times higher among women who reported both physical and sexual abuse. Sexual abuse alone did not seem to be a risk factor, Harlow’s team found. However, they point out, only a small number of women reported sexual abuse, which makes it hard to draw conclusions. The overall findings, they say, underscore the need for doctors to screen for physical and sexual abuse for both the treatment and prevention of eating disorders. (SOURCE: Epidemiology: Reuters Health News: June 2004.)