Racial and Ethnic Differences in the Genetic Risk of Eating Disorder Phenotypes

Eating disorders affect individuals of all racial and ethnic groups, yet inclusion of individuals with diverse backgrounds in research is limited, especially within a genetics framework. Twin studies that include European... [ view full abstract ]

Eating disorders affect individuals of all racial and ethnic groups, yet inclusion of individuals with diverse backgrounds in research is limited, especially within a genetics framework. Twin studies that include European Americans and African Americans have examined the eating disorder symptoms of binge eating and purging, reporting statistically similar heritability estimates for both groups. Additional research examining genetic correlations between eating disorder symptoms and other psychiatric and substance use disorders suggest potential differences in these estimates between groups. Existing genome-wide association studies of eating disorder phenotypes only include European Americans, yet samples from other racial/ethnic groups are currently being added to these studies. The inclusion of diverse racial/ethnic samples in genetic research on eating disorders and their symptoms will be essential for elucidating genetic and environmental risk on these pernicious disorders.