THE PREVALENCE OF BULIMIA - A REVIEW OF THE EMPIRICAL-RESEARCH

Bulimia nervosa represents a serious, psychophysiological disorder among adolescent women. The prevalence of this eating disorder is frequently described as "epidemic." The present review examined 40 studies on its prevalence. Estimates of prevalence have varied dramatically, depending on the subjects sampled, diagnostic criteria used, and, especially, the researchers' method for establishing cases. Popular reports in the literature of prevalence rates greater than between 1-3% cannot be substantiated by the available, published data. Groups denoted as bulimic in studies that suggest dramatically higher prevalence rates likely include many false-positive cases. However, it is also likely that an unknown number of bulimia nervosa cases are not being included in prevalence study screening samples.