The prevalence of bulimia and binge eating in adolescent girls

This research investigated the prevalence of bulimia and binge eating in 363 adolescent girls in the ninth through twelfth grade (X age = 16.0 years). Substantial proportions of these girls reported episodes of binge eating (46.0%) and acknowledged the use of self-induced vomiting (11.2%), laxatives (4.7%), and fasting (36.4%) as methods to control their weight. While 7.7% of the girls met the DSM-III criteria for the diagnosis of bulimia, the prevalence rate decreases to 2.8% when these criteria are modified to require the presence of at least weekly binging and purging only via self-induced vomiting or the use of laxatives. An additional 4.4% of the girls engaged in “problematic” binge eating. Comparisons with previous research are offered and diagnostic issues discussed.