Children with autistic traits more likely to develop eating disorders, UCL study finds

Children who displayed higher autistic traits aged seven were 24% more likely to have disordered eating behaviours by 14, the study found

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Children with autistic traits are more likely to develop eating disorders, a study by the University College London has found. 

The researchers said their new findings suggest autistic traits in childhood precede eating disorders, a conclusion previous research has been unable to determine, meaning autism could be a risk factor for developing anorexia, bulimia or binge-eating.

The study, published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, involved 5,381 adolescents who participated in the Children of the 90s study by the University of Bristol. 

The UCL researchers looked for autistic social traits - such as difficulties in communicating - in the children aged seven before considering if they showed characteristics of disordered eating, including fasting, purging, prolonged dieting, and binge-eating at age 14.

The study found that children who displayed higher autistic traits at age seven were 24 per cent more likely to have weekly disordered eating behaviours by the time they were 14-years-old.

Children with autism often have difficulties with social communication which, the researchers say, could contribute to higher rates of depression and anxiety at young ages. 

Disordered eating might result from dysfunctional methods of coping with these emotional difficulties, the researchers said.

Dr Francesca Solmi, of UCL Psychiatry and lead author on the study, said: "We have found that young children with autistic traits at age seven are more likely than their peers to end up developing eating disorder symptoms in adolescence.

"Most other studies looked at snapshots in time, rather than tracking people over multiple years, so it wasn't clear whether autism increases the risk of eating disorders, or if symptoms of eating disorders could sometimes resemble autistic traits."

The autism traits examined by the researchers were reported by the child’s mother in the University of Bristol study and were not a diagnosis of autism. 

This means the findings would involve children who do not necessarily have autism but would also include children with autism who might not have been diagnosed, the researchers said. 

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