Urbanisation and the incidence of eatingdisorders

The link between degree of urbanisation and a number of mental disorders iswell established. Schizophrenia, psychosis and depression are known to occurmore frequently in urban areas. In our primary care-based study of eatingdisorders, the incidence of bulimia nervosa showed a dose–response relationw...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inBritish journal of psychiatry Vol. 189; no. 6; pp. 562 - 563
Main Authors Van Son Gabriëlle E, Van Hoeken Daphne, Bartelds Aad I M, Van Furth Eric F, Hoek, Hans W
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London Cambridge University Press 01.12.2006
Subjects
Age
Anorexia
Bulimia
Bulimia nervosa
Eating disorders
Etiology
Females
Health services
Hypotheses
Males
Mental disorders
Mental health
Patients
Population
Primary care
Psychiatry
Psychosis
Rural areas
Schizophrenia
Urban areas
Urbanism
Urbanization
Netherlands
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Summary:The link between degree of urbanisation and a number of mental disorders iswell established. Schizophrenia, psychosis and depression are known to occurmore frequently in urban areas. In our primary care-based study of eatingdisorders, the incidence of bulimia nervosa showed a dose–response relationwith degree of urbanisation and was five times higher in cities than inrural areas. Remarkably, anorexia nervosa showed no association withurbanisation. We conclude that urban life is a potential environmental riskfactor for bulimia nervosa but not for anorexia nervosa. These findingsprovide a promising avenue for further research into the aetiology of eatingdisorders.
ISSN:0007-1250
1472-1465
DOI:10.1192/bjp.bp.106.021378