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Abstract
Background: Binge eating disorder (BED) is relatively common in young people and is associated with marked impairment in physical and mental health.
Aims: We examined perceptions of the severity of BED in a population-based sample of adolescents.
Methods: Male (n = 531) and female (n = 1135) adolescents recruited from 12 Australian schools completed a survey that featured a vignette of a fictional female school student suffering from BED followed by a series of questions addressing perceptions of severity.
Results: Approximately half of participants agreed or strongly agreed that BED is a serious problem (male: 52.0%; female: 63.2%) requiring professional treatment (male: 48.2%; female: 54.5%). Approximately one-third of boys (30.7%) believed that BED is primarily a problem of “lack of will power/self-control”, whereas one in five girls (19.3%) held this view. Less than half of participants (male: 42.7%; female: 44.1%) believed that someone with BED would be deserving of sympathy.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that many adolescents, boys in particular, do not consider BED to be a serious mental health problem and believe that individuals with BED lack will-power and/or are undeserving of sympathy. Awareness and understanding of BED may need to be addressed in school-based mental health promotion programs.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by assistance granted to Higher Degree Research students by the Australian National University Research School of Psychology. The authors gratefully acknowledge the contribution of participating schools, teachers, parents and students.
Declaration of interest
The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.