Eating Concerns Screen
Based on the SCOFF questionnaire developed by Morgan, Reid, and Lacey (1999) at King's College London. Five yes/no questions covering eating patterns, body image, and loss of control around food. Used in primary care settings worldwide.
Answer Yes or No to each of the following questions.
1. Do you make yourself Sick (vomit) because you feel uncomfortably full?
2. Do you worry that you have lost Control over how much you eat?
3. Have you recently lost more than One stone (14 lbs / 6 kg) in a 3-month period?
4. Do you believe yourself to be Fat when others say you are too thin?
5. Would you say that Food dominates your life?
About This Screener
This screener reproduces the SCOFF questionnaire (Morgan, Reid, and Lacey, 1999). The SCOFF acronym stands for the five core concepts: Sick, Control, One stone, Fat, and Food. A score of 2 or more "Yes" answers has been validated as the optimal cutoff for detecting anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. The SCOFF has a sensitivity of 97.7% and specificity of 94.4% at this cutoff in the original validation study.
The SCOFF does not distinguish between specific eating disorders and is not validated for binge eating disorder specifically. A positive screen warrants a comprehensive evaluation with a specialist in eating disorders.