Is There An Overlap Between Eating Disorders and Neurodevelopmental Disorders in Children with Obesity?
| Author | |
|---|---|
| Abstract |    :  
                  This study aimed at assessing the prevalence of eating disorders (EDs) and ED symptomatology in children with obesity, and at investigating whether EDs occur more often among individuals with a comorbid attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Seventy-six children (37 girls, 39 boys, age 5-16 years) were recruited at an outpatient obesity clinic. The adolescents completed ED instruments including The Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and The Eating Disorder Inventory for children (EDI-C). The parents of all participants were interviewed regarding the child's psychiatric morbidity. Diagnoses of ADHD and ASD were collected from medical records. Anthropometric data were compiled. Eight participants (11%) fulfilled the criteria for a probable ED and 16 participants (21%) had ADHD and/or ASD. Two adolescent girls had a probable ED and coexistent ADHD and ASD. No other overlaps between EDs and ADHD/ASD were observed. Loss of control (LOC) eating was present in 26 out of 40 (65%) adolescents, seven of whom had ADHD, ASD or both. LOC eating was not overrepresented among teenagers with ADHD and/or ASD. Weight and shape concerns were on a par with age-matched adolescents with EDs. EDs and ED behavior are more common among children/adolescents with obesity than in the general population. There is no substantial overlap between EDs and ADHD/ASD in adolescents with obesity.  | 
        
| Year of Publication |    :  
                  2019 
             | 
        
| Journal |    :  
                  Nutrients 
             | 
        
| Volume |    :  
                  11 
             | 
        
| Issue |    :  
                  10 
             | 
        
| Date Published |    :  
                  2019 
             | 
        
| URL |    :  
                  https://www.mdpi.com/resolver?pii=nu11102496 
             | 
        
| DOI |    :  
                  10.3390/nu11102496 
             | 
        
| Short Title |    :  
                  Nutrients 
             | 
        
| Download citation |