Standardization of the Binge Eating Scale among Iranian Obese Population

The purpose of this study was to adopt the Binge Eating Scale (BES) among the Iranian obese population. BES and a semi-structured interview based on DSM-IV criteria for binge eating disorder were administered among 60 obese subjects aged 20 to 50 years. In order to evaluate test-retest reliability, 30 obese subjects were asked to complete the BES again 9 to 20 days later. In addition, to assess the discriminate validity, 60 normal-weight control subjects were asked to complete the BES. The obese and the normal weight control group were matched for age and sex. The Persian version of the BES showed a sensitivity of 84.6% and specificity of 80.8% in identification of binge eating disorder. The test-retest reliability and internal consistency of BES were 0.71 and 0.85 respectively. The BES effectively discriminated obese persons from the normal weight subjects. These findings suggest that the Persian version of BES is a valid instrument for screening binge eating disorder in the Iranian obese population.