Ethnic differences seen in eating disorder

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - While the frequency of eating disorder symptoms does not vary by ethnicity, there are variations in the level of distress caused by certain symptoms and in patients' weight control strategies, a new study shows.

Dr. Debra L. Franko of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and colleagues also found patients with these problems may be treated differently by health care providers based on their ethnic background.

"Our findings suggest there may be some important differences among ethnic groups in regard to eating disorder symptoms, symptom-related distress, and likelihood for referral that merit further investigation," Franko and her team write in the International Journal of Eating Disorders.

Anorexia had previously been thought of as a disease of upper-middle-class European-Americans, Franko and her team note, but it is now understood to affect people of all ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds.

To investigate any cross-ethnic difference, the researchers looked at 5,435 men and women with eating disorders. There was no difference among whites, African-Americans, Latin Americans, Asians and Native Americans in the prevalence of binge eating, restrictive eating, and purging, and for exercising excessively.

However, diuretic use was less common among Asian Americans, and Native Americans were more likely to use laxatives and multiple purging strategies.

While whites, blacks and Latinos were most distressed by binge eating, Asian Americans found vomiting to be the most distressing.

The researchers also found that Asian patients who used laxatives to control their weight were less likely to be referred for evaluation for eating disorders than individuals in other ethnic groups.

Doctors should be aware that individuals from different ethnic groups may have different experiences of eating disorders and symptoms, which can help them treat these patients more effectively, Franko and her colleagues conclude.

SOURCE: International Journal of Eating Disorders, March 2007.