Restrictive dieting and compulsive eating behavior in a sample of Mexican adolescents

The central objective of the present study was to determine if in a sample of Mexican adolescents there would be a relationship frequently postulated between restrictive dieting and compulsive eating behavior. The whole sample was conformed by 305 adolescents (154 women and 151 men). This sample was divided into n(1)=278 adolescents that in a period of 15 days had "never" followed a restrictive diet and sample n(2)= 27 adolescents that in the same period of 15 days had followed a restrictive diet very "frequently" and "always". The mean age for men was X=16.09 years old and S=0.90, and the mean age for women was of X=16.16 years old and S=1.07. A scale was applied which explores risk factors associated with eating disorders. The instrument was applied in classrooms to the adolescents who accepted to participate voluntarily. Considering the most interesting findings, a prevalence of 10% of adolescents with a high and clear manifestation of risk eating behavior was found and the relationship between restrictive dieting and compulsive eating behavior or overeating were confirmed.