Validation and cut-off point of the Binge Eating Scale (BES) in Mexican population

Abstract

Introduction: binge eating disorder (BED) is the most prevalent eating psychopathology among the population, so validated screening instruments are necessary for its detection and timely diagnosis. Objective: to confirm the factor structure of the Binge Eating Scale (BES) through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and to propose a cut-off point in a Mexican sample. Method: the sample was non-probabilistic, consisting of 421 people (66.7% women) with an age range of 18 to 57 years (M = 23.92, SD = 7.38) from Mexico City and the metropolitan area. All the participants answered two instruments that evaluated symptoms of BED and those who scored high were interviewed for diagnosis of the disorder. Results: of the 421 people, 60 were diagnosed with BED. An adequate internal consistency of the instrument was observed, and the CFA ratified the structure of the original version of two factors: 1) cognitive manifestations and 2) behavioral manifestations, presenting a good adjustment of the data. Different cut-off points were explored, observing 17 as the most appropriate according to the values of sensitivity (98%) and specificity (93%). Conclusion: these results contribute to the development of an evaluation scale of binge eating in the Mexican population and provide a valid BES examination for the detection of BED symptoms in both men and women.