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Genetic and environmental contributions to obesity and binge eating
Author(s) -
Bulik Cynthia M.,
Sullivan Patrick F.,
Kendler Kenneth S.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
international journal of eating disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.785
H-Index - 138
eISSN - 1098-108X
pISSN - 0276-3478
DOI - 10.1002/eat.10140
Subject(s) - binge eating , heritability , bulimia nervosa , obesity , binge eating disorder , psychology , twin study , population , bivariate analysis , eating disorders , genetic correlation , demography , clinical psychology , medicine , genetic variation , environmental health , genetics , endocrinology , biology , statistics , mathematics , sociology
Abstract Objective Binge eating is present in a substantial proportion of obese individuals. A tendency toward obesity has been identified as a risk factor for eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. The purpose of this article was to determine the extent of overlap between genetic and environmental factors that contribute to the liability to obesity and binge eating. Research Method In a population‐based sample of 2163 female twins, we conducted bivariate twin modeling to explore the relation between the genetic and environmental risk factors for obesity and binge eating. Results Bivariate twin modeling revealed substantial heritability for obesity (0.86: 95% CI, 0.77–0.94), moderate heritability for binge eating (0.49: 95% CI, 0.38–0.61), and a modest genetic correlation of +.34 (95% CI, 0.19–0.50) between the two traits. Conclusions Both binge eating and obesity are heritable conditions, and there seems to be only modest overlap in the genetic risk factors that increase liability to each condition. © 2003 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 33: 293–298, 2003.