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Global, Regional and National Burden of Eating Disorders in Female from 1990 to 2021: A Systematic Analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021
27 Pages Posted: 19 Aug 2024
More...Abstract
Background: To better understand the latest burden of eating disorders (ED) among females, this study analyzes the age structure and temporal trends of the disease burden.
Methods: We used data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 study to assess the burden for ED among females in 204 countries and 21 regions, mainly through incidence, prevalence, and disability-adjusted life year (DALY) metrics. Further analyze the impact of epidemiological and demographic changes on eating disorders.
Results: In 2021, the prevalence rate was 262.685 (198.374-346.616), representing a 13.6% increase; the incidence rate was 104.523 (73.156-142.060), marking a 10.5% rise; and the DALYs rate was 55.480 (33.982-85.686), reflecting a 13.4% increase. The overall burden peaked during the COVID-19 pandemic, and this increases were more pronounced for bulimia nervosa (BN) compared to anorexia nervosa (AN). The region with the most significant increase in the burden of ED was in East Asia, while the country with the most significant burden was Australia. And regions with a high SDI experienced a heavier burden of ED. The highest incidence rate of female ED was found in the age group of 15-19 years, while the highest prevalence and DALYs rate was in 20-24.
Interpretation: This study highlights a significant increase in the disease burden of ED among females, with the heaviest burden observed during adolescence and early adulthood. Additionally, there are notable regional differences, with a more pronounced burden in areas of high social demographic index (SDI). These findings emphasize the need for disease prevention efforts for female ED patients to be focused on specific age groups and regions or countries with a high SDI. Moreover, it suggests that future mental health policies in rapidly developing countries should give particular attention to the female ED population.
Funding: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82071500), Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Program (21Y11921100), the Program of Shanghai Academic/Technology Research Leader (21XD1423300), Shanghai Municipal Administrator of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ZY-(2021-2023)-0207-01), Shanghai Pujiang Program (21PJD063).
Declaration of Interest: The authors have declared no competing interests.
Ethical Approval: All data used in this study were obtained from publicly available sources or provided by collaborating organizations, and appropriate ethical approvals were obtained. This study adhered to the ethical standards set out in the Declaration of Helsinki and the relevant Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). No primary data collection involving human participants was conducted and therefore no additional ethical approval was required.
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