Disordered eating behaviors among a sample of final-year medical students at Cairo University and its relationship with alexithymia and social cognition

Abstract

Abstract Background This study aims to estimate the risk of eating disorders and their related factors among final-year medical students. Additionally, the present study is assessing the disordered eating behaviors relationship with alexithymia and social cognition. Methods An approved descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at Cairo University’s Faculty of Medicine from August 2021 to December 2022. The participants were categorized into two distinct groups: Group A (students at risk for eating disorders) and Group B (students not at risk for eating disorders). All participants were evaluated using the Eating Attitude Test-26 (EAT-26), the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q), the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Emotion Identification Test from the Ekman Program, and Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test-revised version (RMET). Results A total of 370 final-year students, both male and female, participated in the study. Group A included 136 students (37%), while Group B consisted of 234 students (63%). Female students exhibited a greater risk for developing an eating disorder (p = < 0.001). Students classified as at risk for eating disorders displayed significantly elevated alexithymia scores and diminished social cognition scores when compared to their counterparts without risk (p = < 0.001). Conclusion Medical students are more susceptible to eating-related problems. Deficits in alexithymia and social cognition potentiate the risk of eating disorders.

Keywords

• Disordered eating behaviors (DEBs)
• Medical students
• Alexithymia
• Social cognition (SC)
• Eating Attitude Test-26 (EAT-26)
• Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q)