Modeling Progression to Eating Disorders – Center for Health Decision Science

CHDS doctoral student Ye Shen and colleagues modeled the progression of disordered weight control behaviors (DWCB) to eating disorders from early childhood to young adulthood in Canada. DWCBs have long-term health effects and are a near-universal risk factor for most eating disorders but existing data is limited. The burden of eating disorders in Canada is well documented but Canadian national surveillance surveys do not effectively capture youths’ engagement in DWCB nor their progression to eating disorders, which leaves gaps for advising on screening and prevention.

Shen and colleagues developed a microsimulation model for the development of DWCB and progression to eating disorders from Canadian young people from age four to thirty. They estimated that DWCB peaked at 16 years with a point prevalence of 33% among female Canadians and of 11% among male Canadians. By age 30 years, 68% of female individuals and 49% of male individuals had ever engaged in DWCB. Among female Canadians engaged in DWCB, 22.5% later developed eating disorders. Their findings highlight the need for approaches to prevention, screening and early intervention in the early years of adolescence.

Learn more: Read the full article, Development of Disordered Weight Control Behaviors and Its Progression to Eating Disorders in Canada: A Nationally Representative Microsimulation
Learn more: Explore the CHDS Approach to Models and Tools