Diabetes, Eating Disorders and Body Image in Young Adults: an Exploratory Study About "diabulimia"

Overview

Journal Eat Weight Disord

Publisher Springer

Date 2017 Jun 10

PMID 28597360

Citations 11

Authors

Maria Ana Falcao

Rita Francisco

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare disordered eating (DE) and body image dissatisfaction (BID) among young adults with type 1 diabetes and their peers without diabetes, to investigate the consequences of diabetes for food, body image and weight in individuals with diabetes and to identify the behavior of insulin omission as a weight loss strategy.

Methods: Fifty-five young adults with diabetes and 73 without diabetes (ages 18-30) completed self-report questionnaires to evaluate their behaviors, attitudes and feelings related to eating disorders and their perceptions about body image. The participants with diabetes were asked to answer a questionnaire with open and closed questions developed specifically for this study.

Results: No significant differences between participants with and without diabetes in relation to BID and DE were found. The results demonstrated several changes resulting from diabetes in terms of food, body image and weight that interfere with the day-to-day life of individuals with diabetes; 7.3% of these participants reported insulin omission as a weight loss strategy.

Conclusions: This study emphasizes the importance of research on DE in the population with diabetes and their prevention, screening and treatment. In particular, it is essential to give more attention to insulin omission as a compensatory behavior that is inappropriate and harmful to health.

Level Of Evidence: Level III, case-control analytic study.

Citing Articles

The role of diabetes distress in Diabulimia.

Poos S, Faerovitch M, Pinto C, Jamalkhani N, Chaudhri F, Khan S J Eat Disord. 2023; 11(1):213.

PMID: 38041170 PMC: 10691075. DOI: 10.1186/s40337-023-00924-7.

Comparative Analysis of Body Image Dissatisfaction, Depression, and Health-Related Quality of Life in Adults with Type 1 Diabetes: A Case-Control Study.

Inns S, Chen A, Myint H, Lilic P, Ovenden C, Su H Nutrients. 2023; 15(18).

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The misuse of insulin by males with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus for weight and/or shape control: a systematic scoping review.

Goddard G, Oxlad M, Turnbull D J Diabetes Metab Disord. 2023; 22(1):13-34.

PMID: 37255778 PMC: 10225459. DOI: 10.1007/s40200-022-01151-8.

An integrative model as a step toward increasing the awareness of eating disorders in the general population.

Vasiliu O Front Psychiatry. 2023; 14:1184932.

PMID: 37205977 PMC: 10188970. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1184932.

Comparison of eating disorders and eating behaviors in adults with and without type 2 diabetes prior to bariatric surgery.

Shakeri Z, Mardali F, Azizabadi Farahani M, Alemrajabi M, Mottaghi A J Eat Disord. 2022; 10(1):107.

PMID: 35854337 PMC: 9295507. DOI: 10.1186/s40337-022-00623-9.

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