Eating disorders appear to have become substantially more common worldwide, with the estimated incidence of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa rising 71% between 1990 and 2023. A new global analysis estimates that these two conditions accounted for the equivalent of about 3.83 million years of healthy life lost in 2023, while clinicians warn that the misuse of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs may be worsening the problem for some patients.
Clinicians report increasingly severe cases
Cheri Levinson, a clinical psychologist at the University of Louisville in Kentucky who has specialized in eating disorders for nearly 20 years, said she is now seeing the most severely ill patients of her career. Many of them are misusing GLP-1 drugs.
“This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen,” Levinson said.
Eating disorders are mental health conditions in which eating behaviors affect a person’s health. They include anorexia nervosa, which is characterized by a fear of gaining weight, and bulimia nervosa. The source also notes that the overall number of people affected may be considerably higher when other eating disorders are included.
Some people may have a genetic predisposition to particular eating disorders, but researchers believe external factors can help trigger their development. These factors may include stress or social pressure to lose weight. In many cases, simply restricting food intake can trigger an eating disorder, Levinson said.
A global analysis from 1990 to 2023
Eating disorders were already prevalent in the 1990s, when cultural pressure to look thin was widespread. The “heroin chic” era is one example.
To examine how the situation has changed, Luhai Bai and colleagues at China’s Nanjing Medical University Children’s Hospital compiled data from studies and surveys of populations around the world. The researchers used statistical models to fill gaps in the available data.
The study estimated the annual incidence of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa in each of 204 countries and territories from 1990 through 2023. The researchers also estimated the conditions’ effects on global health using disability-adjusted life years, a measure that accounts for years of healthy life lost because of illness or disability. The World Health Organization explains the measure here.
The findings were published in JAMA Psychiatry. The research team found that the incidence of the two disorders increased by 71% between 1990 and 2023.
“In 2023, they will cost the world the equivalent of about 3.83 million years of healthy life,” Bai said.
Source: www.technologyreview.com
