Self-Esteem, Body Mass Index Status and Risk of Eating Disorders among Health Sciences Students

This study aimed to ascertain the association between eating disorder risk, Body Mass Index (BMI), and self-esteem level among Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) undergraduate health sciences students at Health Campus, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia. The self-esteem level and eating disorder risk of 166 USM health sciences students were evaluated in this cross-sectional study using the Rosenberg's Self Esteem Score and the Eating Attitude Test 26 (EAT-26) questionnaire, respectively. Based on their self-reported height and weight, the BMI was computed. The Fisher Exact Test and Chi-Square were used to determine the associations between the self-esteem level and BMI and the risk of eating disorders, respectively. Out of the 166 students, the majority (65.1%) had self-esteem levels within the normal range, while 57.8% had normal BMI. In the meantime, it was found that 19.9% had a high chance of getting an eating disorder. This study demonstrated a substantial association (p=0.012) between self-esteem and BMI status as well as between eating disorder risk and self-esteem (p=0.002). Self-esteem has a major impact on the psychological factors influencing BMI and contributing to the development of eating disorders. Additionally, future research should consider incorporating factors like body perception and body dissatisfaction. Additional research was required to validate the existing findings.