Children’s Eating Attitude Test (chEAT)

The Children's Eating Attitudes Test (ChEAT) is the children's version of the widely used adult EAT-26, rewritten at a reading level a child can manage. It screens for attitudes and behaviors associated with disordered eating — preoccupation with food, restricting, purging, and worry about weight and shape.

Twenty-six items are each rated on a six-point frequency scale from always to never, with only the three most frequent responses earning points, so the total runs 0 to 78. Higher scores mean more symptoms. A total of 20 or above is the threshold conventionally used to prompt a fuller evaluation. It is a screen, not a diagnosis: a score above the cut-off means look further, and a score below it does not rule anything out.

• Mapping the gaps: A scoping review of research on pediatric feeding disorder - ScienceDirect

Licensing Notes: The instrument circulates freely in the peer-reviewed literature and through clinical platforms..