The statistics on bulimia nervosa can be sobering. While those who struggle with bulimia nervosa are not always easy to spot, it is a common illness. Fortunately, recovery rates are good with treatment. Unfortunately, relatively few persons with bulimia choose to get treatment.
Onset of Bulimia
Bulimia nervosa normally appears in adolescent or young adult women, although there are cases of bulimia first appearing earlier or later in life.
Prevalence
One to two percent of adolescent or young adult women meet the criteria for a diagnosis of bulimia nervosa. Some research suggests that the rate is higher for college-aged women--around 4%.
Purging alone does not meet the criteria for bulimia nervosa, but the Eating Disorders Coalition for Research, Policy, and Action holds that 13% of high school girls purge.
Gender Differences in Bulimia
The American Psychiatric Association suggests that among those with bulimia nervosa, women outnumber men ten to one. At least one other study indicates that the ration of women to men is only four to one. And many men do not report eating disorder behaviors (concerned that they have a "women's disease"), so the proportion of men with bulimia nervosa and other eating disorders may be higher still.
Recovery
As many as 60-80% of those who receive treatment for bulimia are in remission within three months. But relapse is common, and 15-25% continue to meet the criteria for a diagnosis of bulimia years later.
Sources
American Psychiatric Association, 1994. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th ed. Washington, D.C., American Psychiatric Association.
Anderson, Arnold, Leigh Cohn, and Thomas Holbrook, 2000. Making weight: men's conflicts with food, weight, shape, and appearance. Carlsbad, CA: Gurze Books.
Anorexia Nervosa and Related Eating Disorders, Inc. (ANRED), 2005. "Statistics: How many people have eating disorders?" Accessed 9 December 2006.
Ice, Susan, 2006. "Statistics." Eating Disorders Coalition for Research, Policy, and Action. Accessed 9 December 2006.
National Eating Disorders Association, 2002. "Bulimia nervosa." Accessed 9 December 2006.
University of Maryland Medical Center, 2004. "How serious is bulimia nervosa without serious weight loss (anorexia)?" Accessed 9 December 2006.
