Single and married patients with eating disorders

Forty married and 22 unmarried female patients with eating disorders were s tudied to elucidate the relationship between earing disorders and marriage. Eating disorders developed in 14 patients before marriage (premarital onse t) and in 26 patients at or after marriage (postmarital onset). The postmar ital onset group was a significantly higher age at onset, but similar in ag e and duration of illness compared with the group of 27 unmarried patients. However, the various clinical features of the three groups did not differ. Four premarital onset patients showed exaggerated clinical features after marriage, but the other patients showed Ilo change in clinical features aft er marriage. In the postmarital onset group, eating disorders were triggere d in 18 (69%) patients by marital problems, separation or divorce. In contr ast, eating disorders were triggered by dieting to be slim in eight (57%) p atients of the premarital onset group and 12 (55%) patients of the unmarrie d group. These results suggest that marital discord plays an important role in the development and maintenance of eating disorders among married women .