Eating disorders among health science students at a university in southern Brazil

objectives: to analyze eating disorders among female university students and to assess the frequency of bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and inappropriate weight loss strategies in this population. methods: the sample comprised 214 female university students attending different health science programs at a university in southern brazil, aged over 18 years, assessed using self-administered questionnaires. the 26-item version of the eating attitudes test (eat-26), the bulimic investigatory test, edinburgh (bite), and a supplementary questionnaire covering data on weight status and inappropriate weight loss strategies were used to assess dietary abnormalities. results: mean age (± standard deviation) was 21±9.93 years, and mean body mass index (bmi) was 21.1±2.59. among the respondents, 72.9% said they would like to weigh less, 29% reported the use of different weight loss methods (diuretics were the most common, followed by laxatives, amphetamine-derived drugs, and self-induced vomiting). with regard to eat-26 scores, 22.4% (95%ci 17.7-27.1) revealed abnormal feeding patterns; bite indicated that 9.8% (95%ci 6.5-13.1) were at risk for developing bulimia and 36.9% (95%ci 31.5-42.3) required clinical evaluation. mean bmi was lower among students with normal scores on both tests, but no association was found between bmi and satisfaction with own weight. conclusion: there was a strong trend toward eating disorders in the health science students assessed, as demonstrated by eat-26 and bite scores; inadequate weight loss strategies are frequently used as well.