Culture appears to play a role in disordered eating.
Black and Caribbean girls had the lowest rates of disordered eating, probably because African American culture sends teens the message that their physically attractiveness isn't completely tied to being thin, Katarzyna Bisaga, M.D., and colleagues reported.
“These findings, along with previously described higher ideal body weight among [black] girls, support the protective role of cultural values with regards to restrictive weight control behaviors,” said Dr. Bisaga of the New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York.
Conversely, white and Hispanic girls had much higher rates of disordered eating. This seems directly related to the cultural message that being thin is a prerequisite for being attractive, said the investigators.
There also was a significant association between early dieting and depressive disorder symptoms among white girls and those of mixed background. “This finding suggests that Western cultural pressures for thinness may play a role not only in the development of EDS [eating disorder symptoms], but also in the development of DDS [depressive disorder symptoms] in adolescence,” they said (J. Dev. Behav. Pediatr. 2005;26:257–66).
The investigators examined symptoms of eating disorder and depression among 1,445 teenaged girls (mean age 16 years) in five high schools. All girls took the Eating Attitudes Test-26 and the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire.
No ethnic group was immune to symptoms of disordered eating; however, there were significant differences in the scores. Black and Caribbean girls had the lowest proportion of high scores (9% and 6.5%), while white and Hispanic girls had higher proportions of high scores (16%). Asian girls fell in the middle (13%).
Black, Caribbean, and Hispanic girls were more likely to binge eat than white or Asian girls, while mixed background, white, and Hispanic girls were more likely to engage in self-induced vomiting.
Scores on the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire were highest among Asian girls and lowest among black girls. White girls and those of mixed background were most likely to have a correlation between depressive symptoms and early dieting.
Hispanic girls seem particularly at risk for eating disorder symptoms.
“They started dieting, engaged in self-induced vomiting, and used diet pills at an earlier age than Caribbean and African American girls. These findings add to the accumulating evidence that Hispanic girls are at high risk for eating disorders,” the investigators said.