Female medical students are estimated to have a higher risk for developing eating disorders than male medical students

TY - JOUR

T1 - Female medical students are estimated to have a higher risk for developing eating disorders than male medical students

AU - Dissing, Nete

AU - Bak, Nanna Hasle

AU - Pedersen, Laura Erna Toftegaard

AU - Petersson, Birgit H

PY - 2011/1

Y1 - 2011/1

N2 - INTRODUCTION: Studies show that university students are at risk for eating disorders. However, risk behaviour has not been studied among Danish medical students, nor have the gender differences in risk behaviour been described in a Danish context. MATERIAL AND METHODS: All first-year medical students (n = 979) received a questionnaire related to body perception, exercise habits, eating habits, height and weight in the fall of 2006 and 2007. The response rate was 57% (n = 561). The gender distribution of the study population was 71.8% females and 28.2% males and the average age was 21.5 years. RESULTS: More males (89.8%) than females (73.1%) were satisfied with their body and more females (34.8%) than males (10.9%) felt too fat. More females (42.7%) than males (19.9%) felt guilty when eating unhealthy food. 2.3% (all females) claimed to feel anxiety when they were about to eat. More males (48.4%) than females (28.6%) stated that they could not keep themselves from exercising. 13.5% of the underweight females (body mass index < 20 kg/m2) felt too fat, while none of the underweight males had this perception. In average, females and males displayed 2.8 and 2.1 risk behaviours, respectively. CONCLUSION: Female medical students have a drive for thinness and male medical students want to be muscular. More female than male students have a negative body perception. Female medical students are estimated to have a higher risk for developing eating disorders than male students. Future research in this area should address the causes of such behaviour.

AB - INTRODUCTION: Studies show that university students are at risk for eating disorders. However, risk behaviour has not been studied among Danish medical students, nor have the gender differences in risk behaviour been described in a Danish context. MATERIAL AND METHODS: All first-year medical students (n = 979) received a questionnaire related to body perception, exercise habits, eating habits, height and weight in the fall of 2006 and 2007. The response rate was 57% (n = 561). The gender distribution of the study population was 71.8% females and 28.2% males and the average age was 21.5 years. RESULTS: More males (89.8%) than females (73.1%) were satisfied with their body and more females (34.8%) than males (10.9%) felt too fat. More females (42.7%) than males (19.9%) felt guilty when eating unhealthy food. 2.3% (all females) claimed to feel anxiety when they were about to eat. More males (48.4%) than females (28.6%) stated that they could not keep themselves from exercising. 13.5% of the underweight females (body mass index < 20 kg/m2) felt too fat, while none of the underweight males had this perception. In average, females and males displayed 2.8 and 2.1 risk behaviours, respectively. CONCLUSION: Female medical students have a drive for thinness and male medical students want to be muscular. More female than male students have a negative body perception. Female medical students are estimated to have a higher risk for developing eating disorders than male students. Future research in this area should address the causes of such behaviour.

KW - Adaptation, Psychological

KW - Body Mass Index

KW - Denmark

KW - Eating Disorders

KW - Female

KW - Humans

KW - Logistic Models

KW - Male

KW - Questionnaires

KW - Risk Assessment

KW - Risk Factors

KW - Risk-Taking

KW - Sex Factors

KW - Stress, Psychological

KW - Students, Medical

KW - Young Adult

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 21205562

SN - 2245-1919

VL - 58

SP - A4207

JO - Danish Medical Journal

JF - Danish Medical Journal

IS - 1

ER -