Women who have had an eating disorder are more likely to have fertility problems, unplanned pregnancies and negative attitudes to having babies, researchers warned today.
The findings come from 11,088 women taking part in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). They completed questionnaires at 12 and 18 weeks pregnant. One and a half per cent of the women had experienced anorexia, 1.8 per cent bulimia, and 0.7 per cent both conditions.
It took those with eating disorders longer to conceive – forty per cent took longer than six months, compared with a quarter of the unaffected women. They were also more likely to have needed help to conceive (6.2 per cent versus 2.7 per cent).
There was also a higher chance that the pregnancy was unplanned – 41.5 per cent versus 28.6 per cent. The belief that "motherhood means personal sacrifice" was also linked to eating disorders. Although most were pleased to be pregnant, those with eating disorders were more likely to have felt unhappy when they found out (9.8 per cent versus 3.8 per cent).
Full results appear today (August 3) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.
"This research highlights that there are risks to fertility associated with eating disorders," said researcher Abigail Easter, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, UK. "However, the high rates of unplanned pregnancies in women with a history of anorexia suggest that women may be underestimating their chances of conceiving."
She recommends that women planning a pregnancy should seek treatment for their eating disorder symptoms prior to conception, and adds that health professionals should be aware of eating disorders when assessing fertility.
Easter, A., Treasure, J. and Micali, N. Fertility and prenatal attitudes towards pregnancy in women with eating disorders: results from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. BJOG, published online August 3, 2011.
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