A lower screening scoret might reduce the number of untreated cases.
One of the most widely used screening tests for eating disorders is the Eating Attitude Test-26, or EAT-26. The EAT-26 is a self-reported questionnaire designed to differentiate people with eating disorders from those without eating disorders. Is it valid for different populations and cultures?
To prove that the results of the EAT-26 might differ in different target populations of eating disorders patients, Dr. Nobuhiro Nohara and five colleagues from the University of Tokyo designed a study of 152 patients, to better differentiate an appropriate cutoff score in Japanese patients with suspected eating disorders (Eat Weight Disord. 2024. 29:42). The researchers used the Japanese version of the EAT-26 (Clin Psychiatry. 1989. 18:1279).
Total scores differed
Total EAT-26 scores did differ between the 149 final patients with eating disorders and 208 healthy controls from the general population. A cutoff score of 17 was most effective for discriminating Japanese patients with eating disorders from healthy controls. The authors noted that the effectiveness of the lower cutoff score, 17, rather than the standard cutoff score of 20, may help reduce the number of untreated patients with eating disorders in Japan.
Janice Goldschmidt
Has worked with individuals with IDD for the last decade, and written and presented her work in a range of professional formats. She received her Master’s degree in Nutrition from the University of Maryland-College Park, where she initially developed her program for development of food preparation skills, Active Engagement. As Director of Nutrition Services at Community Support Services, Inc. (Gaithersburg, MD), she has continued to build on Active Engagement, which now includes many differing contexts for guiding individuals with IDD and autism to independent cooking skills. She has also worked on the identification, classification, and treatment of eating disorders for this population.