Abstract
ABSTRACTObjectiveEating Disorders (EDs) often start in adolescence, though the prevalence, trajectory of symptom onset and predictors of illness are poorly understood, especially across sociodemographically diverse youth. Here, we leverage data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development℠ (ABCD) Study, a large demographically representative longitudinal sample of youth in the US, to characterize the prevalence of parent- and youth-reported ED symptoms and their sociodemographic characteristics at baseline (ages 9-11) and two-years later (2-year; ages 11-14).MethodA tetrachoric factor analysis summarized clusters of ED symptoms, which were compared between parent and youth reports. Cognitive, mental and physical health variables at baseline were used to predict youth-reported symptoms at 2-year using a mixed-effects logistic regression.ResultsThree factors emerged reflecting “weight distress”, “weight control”, and “bingeing”, with prevalence rates ranging from 1.5 to 7.3%. All symptoms loaded on similar factors between reporters. Rates of symptom endorsement were similar for males and females, with disproportionately higher rates across factors for youth who self-identified as sexual minority, Hispanic, Black, or Mixed race participants, and those from a disadvantaged socioeconomic background, compared to the full ABCD sample. Youth and parent reports at 2-year showed ∼17% overlap. A distinct pattern of cognitive variables emerged as significant predictors of later youth-reported ED concerns, whereas mental health symptoms and traits were non-specific and associated with all ED factors.ConclusionIdentifying the landscape of ED symptoms across demographic groups, reporters and their premorbid factors in late childhood is critical to inform prevention and early intervention efforts, with particularly important implications for historically understudied racial and sexual minority groups.
Publisher
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory