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PREVALENCE AND DETERMINANTS OF EATING DISORDER RISK AMONG TUNISIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 July 2023

M. Turki ,
F. Jemil ,
H. E. Mhiri ,
A. Samet ,
F. Bennaceur ,
N. Halouani ,
S. Ellouze  and
J. Aloulou
M. Turki
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
F. Jemil
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
H. E. Mhiri
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
A. Samet*
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
F. Bennaceur
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
N. Halouani
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
S. Ellouze
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
J. Aloulou
Affiliation:
Psychiatry “B” department, Hedi Chaker university hospital, Sfax, Tunisia
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

The transition to college life can be a stressful period for young adults, and coping strategies can involve changes in eating behaviors.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and correlates of eating disorder risk among Tunisian university students.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive and analytical study among 144 university students in Tunisia. Data were collected using an online questionnaire spread throughout social media (Facebook), using the Google Forms® platform.

Attitudes, feelings and behaviors related to eating were measured using “Eating Attitudes Test” (EAT-26) in order to assess the eating disorder risk.

Results

The mean age of our population was 23.38±3.27 years. More females (73.6%) than males (26.4%) participated in the study. Among them, 10.4% were followed for chronic somatic disease while 11.1% suffered from mental illness. Tobacco, alcohol and cannabis use was noted respectively in 12.5%, 3.5% and 3.5% of cases.

The mean score EAT-26 was 20.45. According to this scale, 32,6% of participants were at high risk of eating disorders.

EAT-26 scores were higher in females (21.23) than males (16.95%), without a significant relationship.

Users of psychoactive substances were more likely to present higher EAT-26 scores (p=0.012), especially the use of alcohol (p=0.005) and weed (p=0.024).

EAT-26 scores were significantly higher among students with a prior history of depression.

Conclusions

Our study highlighted a high prevalence of eating disorder risk in university students. Implementation of public health policies are required, and psychological intervention and health awareness programs would effectively prevent the eating disorder risk.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 66 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 31st European Congress of Psychiatry , March 2023 , pp. S847
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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