Disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in the high-school students of a rural Canadian community

Abstract

Background: Most surveys of disordered eating attitudes in teenagers target females in urban areas. To help plan the distribution of treatment resources for eating disorders in British Columbia we studied male and female students in all of the high schools of a rural community.

Methods: Three hundred and ninety-six of the 2,589 students attending the four high schools within the rural community completed the EAT-26 and a demographic questionnaire.

Results: Three hundred and eighty-one of the 396 students (96%) satisfactorily completed and returned the survey. Their ages ranged from 12 to 19 years with a mean of 15.2 years (SD=1.5 years). Fifty-nine percent of participants were female. On average, males wanted to be 6.2 kg (SD=1.2 kg) heavier and females wanted to be 2.8 kg (SD=6.5 kg) lighter and 8.3 percent of males and 17.3 percent of females scored twenty or above on the EAT-26.

Interpretation: The prevalence of disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in this rural setting was similar to that reported in urban communities in Canada. Disordered eating attitudes and behaviours were common in males. We conclude that there is need for treatment resources for males and that the need for treatment is as great in rural as urban communities.