Publication date: Jul 14, 2025
Eating disorders (EDs) are complex medical conditions that primarily affect adolescents. In Italy, EDs are becoming a serious health concern, but the lack of up-to-date epidemiological data makes it difficult to assess their real impact across the country. Early identification of risk factors is crucial for timely intervention. A multicenter cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1,740 students aged 14-16 years in Sicily. Data on socio-demographic factors, EDs behaviors, social media usage, body appreciation, and bullying were collected through an electronic questionnaire. Regression models were used to test the role of gender and interaction effects with key risk factors. Based on Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) scores, 72. 8% of participants were classified as “not at risk”, 17. 9% as “at risk” and 9. 3% as “at higher risk” of developing EDs using gender-related cut-offs. Girls were overrepresented in the at-risk and higher-risk groups (p
| Concepts | Keywords |
|---|---|
| Bullying | Adolescent |
| Eating | Body image |
| Epidemiological | Bullying |
| Italy | Eating disorders |
| Models | EDE-Q |
| Epidemiological studies | |
| Gender role | |
| Risk factors |
Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | eating disorders |
| disease | IDO | country |
| disease | IDO | intervention |
| disease | MESH | bullying |
| disease | IDO | role |