Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities

INTRODUCTION: There is a growing interest in the relationship between Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Eating Disorders (ED), two relatively common conditions lying on a spectrum from mild to severe clinical features. However, only limited data are available about pathological eating behaviours t...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Bertino, V., Demartini, B., Nisticò, V., Tedesco, R., Faggioli, R., Gambini, O.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Cambridge University Press 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9470462/
http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.321
_version_ 1784788849944166400
author Bertino, V.
Demartini, B.
Nisticò, V.
Tedesco, R.
Faggioli, R.
Gambini, O.
author_facet Bertino, V.
Demartini, B.
Nisticò, V.
Tedesco, R.
Faggioli, R.
Gambini, O.
author_sort Bertino, V.
collection PubMed
description INTRODUCTION: There is a growing interest in the relationship between Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Eating Disorders (ED), two relatively common conditions lying on a spectrum from mild to severe clinical features. However, only limited data are available about pathological eating behaviours throughout adults on the autistic spectrum. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study is to assess dysfunctional eating behaviours, including ED manifestations and ASD-related eating disturbances, in a population of adults with ASD with no intellectual disabilities. METHODS: We recruited 115 adults on the autistic spectrum, with no intellectual disability and 114 neurotypical adults (NA). Participants completed the “Eating Attitude Test” (EAT-26), to measure symptoms and concerns characteristic of ED, and the “Swedish Eating Assessment for Autism Spectrum Disorders” (SWEAA), to assess eating behaviours frequently seen within the autistic spectrum. RESULTS: Subjects with ASD scored significantly higher than NA at the EAT-26 and at the SWEAA. Women reported higher scores than men. Moreover, an interaction effect Group*Gender emerged at the EAT-26 only, with women with ASD scoring higher than men with and than NA overall. ASD subjects scored higher than NA at the EAT-26 subscales Dieting and Bulimia. Furthermore, the higher the SWEAA total score was, the more likely it was that a subject on the autistic spectrum would score above the cut-off of 20 at the EAT-26. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that adults with ASD without intellectual disability presented not only a higher prevalence of eating disturbances typical of autistic spectrum, but also other ED symptoms in comparison to NA. DISCLOSURE: No significant relationships.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-9470462
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2021
publisher Cambridge University Press
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-94704622022-09-29 Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities Bertino, V. Demartini, B. Nisticò, V. Tedesco, R. Faggioli, R. Gambini, O. Eur Psychiatry Abstract INTRODUCTION: There is a growing interest in the relationship between Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Eating Disorders (ED), two relatively common conditions lying on a spectrum from mild to severe clinical features. However, only limited data are available about pathological eating behaviours throughout adults on the autistic spectrum. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study is to assess dysfunctional eating behaviours, including ED manifestations and ASD-related eating disturbances, in a population of adults with ASD with no intellectual disabilities. METHODS: We recruited 115 adults on the autistic spectrum, with no intellectual disability and 114 neurotypical adults (NA). Participants completed the “Eating Attitude Test” (EAT-26), to measure symptoms and concerns characteristic of ED, and the “Swedish Eating Assessment for Autism Spectrum Disorders” (SWEAA), to assess eating behaviours frequently seen within the autistic spectrum. RESULTS: Subjects with ASD scored significantly higher than NA at the EAT-26 and at the SWEAA. Women reported higher scores than men. Moreover, an interaction effect Group*Gender emerged at the EAT-26 only, with women with ASD scoring higher than men with and than NA overall. ASD subjects scored higher than NA at the EAT-26 subscales Dieting and Bulimia. Furthermore, the higher the SWEAA total score was, the more likely it was that a subject on the autistic spectrum would score above the cut-off of 20 at the EAT-26. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that adults with ASD without intellectual disability presented not only a higher prevalence of eating disturbances typical of autistic spectrum, but also other ED symptoms in comparison to NA. DISCLOSURE: No significant relationships. Cambridge University Press 2021-08-13 /pmc/articles/PMC9470462/ http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.321 Text en © The Author(s) 2021 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Abstract
Bertino, V.
Demartini, B.
Nisticò, V.
Tedesco, R.
Faggioli, R.
Gambini, O.
Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
title Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
title_full Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
title_fullStr Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
title_full_unstemmed Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
title_short Eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
title_sort eating disturbances in subjects with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disabilities
topic Abstract
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9470462/
http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.321
work_keys_str_mv AT bertinov eatingdisturbancesinsubjectswithautismspectrumdisorderwithoutintellectualdisabilities
AT demartinib eatingdisturbancesinsubjectswithautismspectrumdisorderwithoutintellectualdisabilities
AT nisticov eatingdisturbancesinsubjectswithautismspectrumdisorderwithoutintellectualdisabilities
AT tedescor eatingdisturbancesinsubjectswithautismspectrumdisorderwithoutintellectualdisabilities
AT faggiolir eatingdisturbancesinsubjectswithautismspectrumdisorderwithoutintellectualdisabilities
AT gambinio eatingdisturbancesinsubjectswithautismspectrumdisorderwithoutintellectualdisabilities