Abstract
Sexual minority youth are often described as at-risk for mental health comorbidities, including disordered eating behavior (DEB) and depression. This study assesses differences in late-adolescent DEB and depressive symptoms among gay/lesbian, bisexual, or mostly heterosexual individuals, and how their symptoms change across early adulthood. While sexual minority youth were more likely to report DEB and elevated depressive symptoms in late adolescence relative to exclusively heterosexual peers, gay/lesbian individuals experienced improvement in early-adulthood depressive symptoms. Conversely, bisexual individuals maintained elevated depressive symptoms into early adulthood, and additional depressive symptoms associated with DEB. DEB may be a unique risk factor shaping the mental health of bisexual youth.
Acknowledgments
This research uses data from Add Health, a program project directed by Kathleen Mullan Harris and designed by J. Richard Udry, Peter S. Bearman, and Kathleen Mullan Harris at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Special acknowledgment is due to Ronald R. Rindfuss and Barbara Entwisle for assistance in the original design of this study. Information on how to obtain the Add Health data files is available on the Add Health website (http://www.cpc.unc.edu/addhealth).
Disclosure
The authors report no conflicts of interest.