Body Image and Eating Behavior among Medical Students: Eating Disorders among Medical Students

Abstract

This cross-sectional study was carried out to analyse the prevalence of abnormal eating behaviours associated with eating disorders (ED), as well as the body composition and body image satisfaction among 202 female medical students (mean (SD) age, 21.8 (2.8) years) recruited from a public university in the city of Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil. Although 78.7% of the students presented eutrophic body mass index (BMI), 66.5% of them indicated a desire to lose weight. There was a high prevalence of risk behaviours for ED and body image dissatisfaction among female medical students, while the vast majority of them presented normal BMI standards. Statistically significant associations between BMI, the desire to lose weight and abnormal signs of eating behaviour can be possible predictors of developing ED.