Eating disorder age of onset in males: Distribution and associated characteristics

The objective of this study was to determine the distribution of age of onset of eating disorders in males as well as the relationship between age of onset and various clinical and demographic characteristics. The medical records of 70 males consecutively admitted to an inpatient eating disorders unit between June of 1992 and June of 2002 were retrospectively reviewed. Age of onset did not significantly differ by admission diagnosis and appeared to have a single peak at about age 14. Inpatients with older ages of onset reported lower percentage of mean matched population weight (r=-0.35, p=0.005) and longer duration of illness (r=0.26, p=0.03) than inpatients with younger ages of onset. This study confirms the findings of previous investigations performed on female samples and also finds some unique aspects of males with eating disorders important to consider in prevention and treatment programs targeting male populations.