Eating Disorders News and Views: August 8 2012

Warning: Articles may be triggering.
articles do not necessarily reflect the views of this blog

FAMILY HEALTH MATTERS: Eating disorders a concern for not only teenage girls

Eating disorders describe several serious conditions that affect 24 million Americans each year, according to the Renfrew Center Foundation for Eating Disorders. And, it’s not always those you would expect.

Boys, adult women and men are not immune from developing this life-threatening condition, either. In fact, according to the National Association for Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, 10 to 15 percent of individuals suffering from anorexia are male.

Eating disorders fall under several categories, the most widely publicized, and dangerous of which are anorexia (severe food restriction) and bulimia (consuming and vomiting large amounts of food). Binge eating (excessive eating without vomiting) and excessive exercise are also considered eating disorders.
Read Family Health Matters in full


Anorexia’s scary online empire
Nothing tastes as good as blogging feels

Once upon a time, anorexia was a relatively private matter. The person suffering from it usually denied their affliction to avoid treatment. Most often, it would remain a secret once diagnosed, in part to avoid becoming the subject of local gossip. And once detected, the person in question would undergo treatment and find herself sequestered away from the outside world in a hospital that wouldn’t even allow Barbie or Disney princess paraphernalia to infiltrate its walls, lest it trigger her urge to starve. Hopefully, she would recover. She would go on with her life, and her friends and family would encourage her to eat, maybe relax a little. Her once-secret eating disorder would become something that she had overcome. It was possible that she would even write a memoir about it one day; Wasted; Solitaire; Feeling for the Bones; Thin; I could name at least a dozen that aren’t about eating disorders, but simply memoirs of a troubled life involving starving yourself at one point in a longer line of suffering.
Read Online Empire in full


Young with eating disorders 'missing out on vital help'

Eating disorders in children are not being taken seriously enough, depriving them of vital treatment, a leading expert has told BBC Newsnight.

Professor Bryan Lask said he is seeing ever younger patients, with increasing numbers becoming ill under age 10.

His pioneering research suggests a strong genetic predisposition to anorexia, which experts say needs to be tackled through early intervention.

New figures reveal eating disorders cost the NHS £1.26bn a year in England.
Read Young with EDs in full


Young, beautiful, anorexic and dead

AT 19, with several teen magazine cover shoots behind her and the prospect of a lucrative modelling career, Bethaney Wallace faced a crippling struggle with eating disorders which finally claimed her life this year.

Doctors believe that over the three years since she developed anorexia and bulimia, her condition had weakened her heart and it stopped beating as she slept.

Her father said: "She lost her self-esteem. She would say she was fat but she was so beautiful -- she didn't realise how beautiful she was.

"She had up days and down days. It was like Jekyll and Hyde.

"I tried to warn her that her organs would fail but she just said: 'Don't be silly'. If you mentioned food it would start an argument."
Read YBA&D in full


Eating disorders exact a toll on older women, too

Molly Woolsey was 19 when her anorexia was diagnosed. Once she passed her 20s, the St. Paul woman said, passers-by assumed she had cancer or another terminal illness because she was so thin.

“It doesn’t occur to them that someone my age could have an eating disorder,” said Woolsey, now 45.
Advertisement

Anorexia, binge eating and bulimia are considered afflictions of teenage girls or women in their 20s. But increasingly, older women are admitting to eating disorder symptoms, which put them at higher risk for a wide range of health problems.
Read Toll on Older Women in full


The pressure to be everything

In the recent Wenatchee World article about eating disorders, nutritionist Laurie Kutrich noted that she has seen an increase in patients with anorexia and bulimia. In October 2010, The Guardian reported a significant increase in prevalence of eating disorders seen in women ages 30 and above. I believe we need to look beyond conventional explanations for the rise in eating disorders and consider ways that the economic downturn may be increasing these illnesses in our society and community. The slow economy creates pressure on women to become an “equal or greater” breadwinner in the family unit (in addition to fulfilling all the other more traditional female roles).
Read Everything in full.


Great Majority of Women with Eating Disorders are Vegetarians

A new study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has determined that women diagnosed with an eating disorder are four times more likely to be vegetarian compared to women with no eating disorders.

In addition to this, women with a diagnosed eating disorder were twice as likely to have been vegetarian at some point in their lives, compared to women without eating disorders.
Read Great Majority in full.


Eating Disorders Tied to Drug Use, Drinking

Adolescent girls with a variety of eating disorders -- even conditions less severe than anorexia or bulimia -- are at risk for obesity and alcohol and drug use, a prospective study found.

Among those who reported binge eating but not purging, the risk for becoming overweight or obese was doubled (OR 1.90, 95% CI 1.04 to 3.48) compared with healthy peers, according to Alison E. Field, ScD, of Harvard University in Boston, and colleagues.
Read Tied To in full



.

Eating Disorders News and Views: August 2011

Anorexics Lack Sense of Belonging, Study Finds
news.com.au

RECOVERING from anorexia nervosa is so difficult for many sufferers because the eating disorder satisfies an intense need to belong, an Australian researcher says.

Social anthropologist Megan Warin believes many anorexics might not seek treatment because they find the disorder incredibly seductive.

Based on her work with people who have the eating disorder, the Adelaide University professor has found that anorexics often lack a sense of belonging and feel disconnected from society.

By controlling their eating, they end up belonging to a group of people who are essentially successful at dieting.

"Anorexia is very empowering for people in the early stages of the illness," she told AAP.

"In fact, they don't see it as an illness, they see it as a lifestyle.

"It's unusual because it's an illness they want to have.
Read Lack Sense of Belonging in full


Lightlake Therapeutics Inc. Set to Begin Phase II Clinical Trials of Binge Eating Disorder Treatment
Market Watch

LONDON, ENGLAND, Aug 24, 2011 (Filing Services Canada via COMTEX) -- Lightlake Therapeutics Inc. (LLTP - OTCBB),("Lightlake" or "the "Company"), an early stage biopharmaceutical company currently developing a nasal spray for the treatment of overweight and obese patients with Binge Eating Disorder, today announced that its patient testing stage of the Phase II clinical trials will start August 26th, 2011

Dr. Roger Crystal, CEO of Lightlake commented, "We are excited to commence the definitive stage of testing of a product that we believe will be a solution to a disease thought to affect a significant proportion of obese and overweight patients today. We recently completed stability testing in an effort to ensure that our nasal spray adheres to internationally recognised safety standards in delivering an effective treatment. Moreover, we have an excellent control group in place, as we were able to select 138 patients from over 900 applicants wanting to participate in our trials in Helsinki. Dr. David Sinclair, our Chief Scientific Officer, revolutionized the way we treat alcoholism and drug addiction through his research into opioid antagonists, and we are confident that in working with him, we can develop an opioid antagonist derived nasal spray for the treatment of those with Binge Eating Disorder."
Read Clinical Trials in full


Study Links Obesity to Brain Disorder
news.com.au

IT seems an odd idea, but scientists believe giving obese people the same psychological counselling as those with anorexia nervosa could help their weight battle.

The Australian scientists came up with the theory after discovering that although obese people and anorexics weigh in at opposite ends of the scales, they share a similar condition affecting the brain.

Both groups have executive function disorders (EFD), which means they have problems organising their daily lives.

Previous studies have linked anorexia to EFD, with scientists pointing to the rigidity and tight control those with the eating disorder exert over not just food but their entire lives as evidence of the brain disorder.
Read Obesity/Brain Disorder in full


Psychiatrist Supports Controversial Diet Book for Kids
Fox News

Maggie Goes on a Diet, a new book by children's author Paul Michael Kramer, is drawing fire from those who believe it inappropriately focuses children on their weight and, by doing so, could lead to eating disorders. In the book, Maggie, a 14-year-old girl who is very overweight and has a negative self-image goes on a diet, works hard at it, loses weight and becomes a soccer star at school. She likes herself better, so the story ends happily-ever-after.

I support Kramer's book. With childhood obesity rates at 17 percent of all children and adolescents (per the Centers for Disease Control), a figure three times that one generation ago, it's time to start teaching kids to control their appetites. It's really that simple.

Nutritionists and child psychologists who charge that Kramer's book will cause eating disorders presume that telling children to eat healthily—even if that means eating less and exercising—will make them sick. This is akin to suggesting that if we advise them to abstain from, or simply even limit, sexual activity that they will become sexually repressed and suffer from a sexual disorder. I don't buy that—at all.
Read Psychiatrist Supports in full
Here's my post about Maggie Goes On A Diet


Sheppard Pratt Programs to Raise Eating Disorder Awareness
The Towerlight

In response to the growing number of Americans suffering from a diagnosable eating disorder, The Center for Eating Disorders at Sheppard Pratt will hold Expanded College Outreach Programs to raise awareness.

According to the American Psychological Association, at least five million Americans suffer from a diagnosable eating disorder. Studies from the APA Public Interest Government Relations Office found that women are more prone to eating disorders than men, particularly college-aged women.

Jennifer Moran, a staff psychologist at Sheppard Pratt’s Center for Eating Disorders, will serve as the college liaison for the college outreach programs. She said the need to raise eating disorder awareness is imperative.
Read Sheppard Pratt Programs in full


The Meaning Of Balance For Body Image
By Margarita Tartakovsky, MS

In April, I interviewed a researcher about attaining a work-life balance. Her first words to me were: There’s no such thing as balance.

And trying to reach a so-called balance is akin to reaching perfection. In other words, it’s not going to happen, and we’re going to drive ourselves insane along the way.

(Here’s the piece if you’re interested.)

Both Christie and Anna wrote thought-provoking posts also questioning the idea of balance. (By the way, I loved Ashley’s post on balance, too.)

But when people say balance, I think what they typically mean is a happy medium or not residing on either side of the spectrum. At least that’s the way I view balance.

With body image, I see a deeply negative body image at one end of the spectrum – where you hate your body, ignore its signals and rarely look after it – and an unrealistically positive body image at the other – where you shoo away every negative, yucky thought, deny your feelings and become the Pollyanna of body positivity.
Read Meaning Of Balance in full


Editor Slammed for Criticising 'Fat Models'
9 news

A prominent Australian fashion writer has been slammed for accusing Myer of using models who were "too fat" in its plus-size runway show.

Damien Woolnough, fashion editor at The Australian, published an article in which he argued: "Big can be beautiful but fat should not be in fashion."

Yesterday's Myer show featured women ranging from size 14 to size 22 and internationally renowned model Robin Lawley even sashayed down the catwalk.

Despite backlash from body image experts, Woolnough stood by his comments when interviewed by Nine News but said he never meant his comments to personally attack any of the models.

"I think the industry for a long time has copped criticism over models that are too skinny, and at yesterday's show we had models who were too fat," he said.
Read Editor Slammed in full


Eating Disorders Model Established in London
The London Free Press

A treatment program for adults with eating disorders - the first of its kind in Ontario - is to be based in London.

Its operating cost is $2.4 million and it will treat as many as 100 people a year in both a residential centre and as out-patients.

"What we need to do is establish continuity of care . . . across all phases of the illness" and with people of all ages, Health Minister Deb Matthews said Tuesday.

Psychiatrists, nurses, dietitians and nurse practitioners will together be part of the new adult program, to be set up through London Health Sciences Centre, where a publicly funded program already exists for children and teens with eating disorders.

"There's no place in the world like this that has the team approach," said Kelly Hall-Holland, who heads the London-based Eating Disorders Foundation of Canada. "It's a dream come true."

The location of the residential centre hasn't been decided.

Hall-Holland hopes the group can make use of the former Cuddy home in Strathroy, which sits on an estate owned by Fanshawe College and is used for the school's horticultural program.

The estate's serene, pastoral atmosphere would be ideal as a residential setting for people with eating disorders, Hall-Holland said.

"They need the most calming atmosphere possible."

Her daughter Michale died in 2009 at age 27 after a battle with anorexia. That struggle spanned more than a decade and included treatment at a private clinic in California because none was available in Ontario.
Read ED Model London in full


picsource:http://www.flickr.com/photos/crystaljingsr/3915512820/

News: Eating Disorders Recently In The News

Addictions & Answers: Behind the insidious 'art' of anorexia

NY Daily News

BILL: Now that Christmas is over, the lose-weight ads are all over TV.  My feeling is all diets work if you stick to them. But the flood of January advertising to "sculpt your body back to a thinner you" must sound very seductive to the anorexic-prone.

DR. DAVE: Did you see the news stories about Isabelle Caro, the 28-year-old French model who posed naked for international anorexia awareness two or three years back? She died last November after battling the eating disorder herself for almost 15 years.

BILL: Doc, why is IT so often a female disease?

DR. DAVE: Bill, that's another dangerous myth —that men have some immunity. Jeremy Gillitzer was an A-List male model with a perfectly sculptured body and Hollywood good looks. He recently died of anorexia –frail and emaciated at 38, weighing just 66 pounds.

BILL: Can't these people just look in the mirror and see something is radically wrong?

DR. DAVE: That's like saying to a meth addict, 'Can't you see you're killing yourself, why don't just stop?'

Read Addictions and Answers in full here.

Study Refutes Myth That Eating Disorders Affect Whites Only
Business Week

FRIDAY, Jan. 7 (HealthDay News) -- Among Native Americans, women are more likely than men to develop eating disorders, a new study finds.

The researchers also found similarities between Native American and white women in terms of binge eating, purging and ever having been diagnosed with an eating disorder, according to the report published Jan. 6 in the International Journal of Eating Disorders.

"This commonality between Native American and white women refutes the myth that eating disorders are problems that only affect white girls and women," study leader Ruth Striegel-Moore, a professor at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., said in a news release from the journal's publisher.
 Read Study Refutes in full here.  




Third annual Bristow race in San Dimas brings attention to eating disorders
sgv tribune

SAN DIMAS - Jackie Bristow's legacy is growing fast, and continues Saturday with another race through San Dimas.
Now in its third year, the annual Jackie Bristow Memorial 5K Run/Walk begins at 8:30 a.m. at the San Dimas Civic Center. Organizers raise funds and hope to bring attention to serious eating disorders in honor of the race's eponymous twin sister.
Bristow died Jan. 1, 2008, at age 19, from complications of anorexia and bulimia. Her death devastated her family, especially her twin Wednesday Vail, who shared Bristow's struggles with eating disorders.
Read 3rd Annual Bristow Race in full here. 

Four-year-old children in Ireland treated for anorexia
Irish Central

Children as young as four-years-of-age are being treated for anorexia in Irish eating disorder clinics.

Doctors have warned that the age of children presenting with disorders is getting younger and there is an increasing demand for services.

The founder of the Marino Therapy Centre, Marie Campion said she has seen patients as young as four presenting with cases of eating disorders.
Read 4 year old children in full here.  


Isabelle Caro, model in anti-anorexia campaign, dies 
USA today

PARIS (AP) — Isabelle Caro, a French actress and model whose emaciated image in a shock Italian ad campaign helped rivet global attention on the problem of anorexia in the fashion world and beyond, has died at the age of 28.

Caro had said she began suffering from anorexia when she was 13, and she weighed about 59 pounds (27 kilograms) when the photos that made her famous were taken.

After a 21-year-old Brazilian model died from the eating disorder, Italian photographer Oliviero Toscani produced a 2007 campaign for an Italian fashion house that plastered newspapers and billboards with a naked picture of a spectral Caro looking over her shoulder at the camera, vertebrae and facial bones protruding under the slogan "No Anorexia."

Read Isabelle Caro in full here. 

sources sited and linked above

December 2010: ED News

Link found between shoplifting and eating disorders in women
The Mainichi Daily News 

Women who habitually shoplift are also very often the victims of eating disorders, suggests a survey by Akagi-kohgen Hospital in Shibukawa, Gunma Prefecture.
The institute is a psychiatric hospital that specializes in treating disorders like alcoholism. It found that over 70 percent of female patients it surveyed who were receiving treatment for kleptomania also had eating disorders like bulimia.
"Shoplifting is of course a crime, but in these types of cases, treatment to prevent a recurrence is necessary," says hospital head Michio Takemura.
Takemura and others surveyed 132 male and female patients that had received treatment for kleptomania at the hospital and affiliated clinics in the Tokyo metropolitan area from January 2008 through July 2009. Of the 92 female patients, 68, or 74 percent, also had eating disorders. Of the 40 male patients, 4, or 10 percent, had eating disorders, showing that the correlation was much higher in the female patients.
Read Shoplifting/ED Link in full. 




Why are so many kids being treating for eating disorders?
ABC 15

Did you know that the rate of kids 12 and younger being hospitalized for eating disorders has risen 119% from 1999 to 2006? This is according to a recent study published by Journal of American Pediatrics.

This is such a scary statistic, but why is this becoming an issue for kids so young?
Caroline Miller is someone who has overcome the mental illness of eating disorders.
She wrote an autobiography called “My name is Caroline” in 1988 and at that time was one of the first books to discuss eating disorders and put a face on the disease. Caroline joined us on Smart Family to talk about this battle of eating disorders.
Read So Many Kids in full.



Tis The Season: Surviving The Holidays With An Eating Disorder
Sacramento Press

When we think of the holidays, our thoughts often go to family, friends, gift-giving, shopping and, yes, food.
Celebrating the season while sharing food with loved ones is part of our collective culture and something we look forward to. But for individuals struggling with an eating disorder, this can often be one of the most distressing times of year.
In the United States, an estimated 8 million girls and women and 1 million boys and men struggle with an eating disorder. Although the average age of onset is 14 to 16, there is no age, gender or cultural limit on who struggles or for how long. Women and men in their 30s, 40s and beyond struggle with anorexia, bulimia or binge eating disorder. An estimated 10 percent die.
Read Tis The Season in full.
Check out this and also this for more holiday survival tips. 



'Plus-sized' model Crystal Renn looks decidedly 'model-sized' in Zac Posen's new look book
Los Angeles Times

Crystal Renn, a former traditional-sized model who became the poster girl for plus-sized modeling after gaining weight and writing about her struggle with anorexia, is still ruffling feathers for seemingly dropping the pounds that make her "plus."
Renn, who co-stars in designer Zac Posen's pre-fall 2011 look book, was never plus-sized in the traditional, size-10-to-14 sense (she claims to be a size 8), but looks even tinier in the new photographs -- a fact that hasn't escaped chatty fashion watchers online. 
Read Crystal Renn in full.


Among Jewish women, eating disorders go under-reported
Stigma of mental illness on marriageability is cited
 The Washington Times

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. | Hilary Waller remembers begging her mother to let her fast on Yom Kippur. At 10 years old, she was a bit too young, but embracing the rigid discipline seemed desperately important.

"It felt like I was practicing not eating. It was something that was reassuring and gave me strength and a sense of pride," said Ms. Waller, now a 28-year-old teacher at a religious school in Blue Bell, Pa.

It was the same rush she got years later in college each time she saw the scale tip downward. Ms. Waller, who suffered from anorexia, starved herself until she stopped menstruating, lost some of her hair and was exercising several times a day.

Health experts say eating disorders are a serious, underreported disease among Orthodox Jewish women and to a lesser extent others in the Jewish community, as many families are reluctant to acknowledge the illness at all and often seek help only when a girl is on the verge of hospitalization.
Read EDs go under-ground in full.


I’m not fat, says ballerina faulted for ‘too many sugarplums’
Today MSNBC

A ballerina who overcame anorexia doesn’t need or want an apology from the New York Times critic who made a crack about her weight in a review of “The Nutcracker,” saying the comment hurt initially but is just part of being a professional in a field that demands perfection from those who work in it.
“As a dancer, I do put myself out there to be criticized, and my body is part of my art form,” Jenifer Ringer, 37, told TODAY’s Ann Curry during an interview Monday. “At the same time, I am not overweight."
Read Ballerina in full.



 all sources linked above

EDs Seen Around The Web: November 2010

When Mom Has an Eating Disorder, Everybody Suffers
parentdish.com

It's every mom's nightmare: Finding out your daughter has an eating disorder. Even worse is knowing you're probably to blame.

Teresa Coates, a 40-year-old mom and solo parent of two, was anorexic in high school. She survived on 3 Musketeers bars and not much else. After high school she continued her bizarre eating habits until one day she went into convulsions at work and was rushed to the hospital. The ER doctor told her if she ever wanted to have children, which she did, she would have to start eating.

Teresa's daughter recently turned 13 and she worries about her. A lot. "I worry genetically about my daughter because I come from a family of very heavy women. And that was a concern when she came home from the hospital. I remember being worried about that. It's a hard thing to know you're genetically predisposed to not be thin."

She does feel, however, that her daughter is off to a much better start than she was at her age. "I came from a real working-class family. We didn't eat a lot of fruits and vegetables and the vegetables we ate came from cans. My take on healthy food wasn't really there. I've been cognizant trying to teach both my kids how to tell if food is good for you. They both read labels, a lot. They eat a lot of fruit and vegetables. They're very aware that you need to drink water."

But that doesn't mean it's easy.
Read in full: When Mom Has An ED 


Making Sense of ED Mortality Statistics
ANAD.org 
By Kathy Chen, MA
Chicago Professional School of Psychology

The topic of eating disorders (EDs) and mortality can be particularly sensitive because of the controversial findings in the research and perhaps their implications.  The common belief appears to be that EDs, especially anorexia nervosa (AN), are associated with a low rate of survival.  Many factors influence the results of research regarding EDs and mortality; yet, the more confusing point seems to be the ways in which these results are recorded.  Therefore, reviewing the research and examining the methods that lead to a study’s results could provide mental health professionals as well as friends and families with a more in-depth understanding of the relationship between mortality and EDs.

The first step to understanding the relationship between mortality and EDs is to study the specific parts of information presented in the research.  First, there are multiple definitions used to determine the rate of death in EDs (Neumärker, 2000).  For instance, the term “mortality rate” is different from the term, “standardized mortality ratio.”  The mortality rate is usually expressed as the number of deaths per 100,000 of the population, whereas the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) is the number of observed deaths divided by the number of expected deaths in a specific population.    In addition, when authors write of mortality rate, they usually refer to the crude mortality rate, which includes the number of deaths out of the total number of people studied during a specific amount of time.  Let me give you a simple example.  Let’s imagine we are researchers who have 100 people in our study.  If we check back with these people in 10 years and find that 5 of them have passed away, then the crude mortality rate would be 5 percent.  To calculate the SMR, let’s again think of a simple example.  We are researchers who have 100 people in our study.  This time these 100 people are adolescent females with AN.  We observe that 50 of them have died within a certain amount of time.  However, let’s say that the expected number of deaths for adolescent females without an ED is 10.  Therefore, the SMR in this hypothetical example would be 5.  This result means that the sample of adolescent females with AN has a level of mortality that is 5 times greater than the average adolescent female population without an ED.  Though these terms may seem similar, they can nonetheless impact the ways in which readers interpret these results.  Thus, when one reads research findings, one would likely want to be aware of the different ways that mortality is measured for the purpose of having a more comprehensive understanding of the research findings.
 Read in full: Making Sense of ED Mortality Statistics


Binging to Lose the Bulge: The Dangers of Drunkorexia
richlandchronicle.com

The disorder ‘anorexia' isn't a new one, but the dangerous eating disorder has now found a new partner. Drunkorexia is a new slang term used to describe people who don't eat in order to save the calories for their alcoholic beverages later.
Although it's not an official medical term, drunkorexia is starting to become widely known across college campuses. College students seem to be the main target, and narrowing it down further, female college students.
The restriction of food in order to binge on drinking is the same concept as other deadly eating disorders including bulimia.
During an interview with ABC News, Savannah, a 22-year-old graduate from the University of Texas talked about her experience being a proclaimed ‘drunkorexic'.
"It was just something I always did while in college as a normal part of my diet so that I could stay skinny but still go out and drink," Savannah said. "I do know a lot of people who skip meals to drink, drink heavily and don't gain any weight. Obviously, their success in this way encourages others to try it. I've done [drunkorexia] for years and I'm still healthy. I'm still skinny."
Read in full: The Dangers of Drunkorexia 

University Course to Study Bulimia and Anorexia

  walesonline

by Helen Turner, South Wales Echo 

EATING disorders are to be studied by students and professionals at a new course launched by Cardiff University.
The Collaborative Working in Eating Disorders module, run by the university’s School of Nursing and Midwifery Studies is the first of its kind in Wales and supports the implementation of a recent Assembly Government report.
In Wales, more than 1,000 new cases of eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia are diagnosed each year.
Such disorders can lead to enduring mental health problems often affecting sufferers’ physical, social and psychological wellbeing.
Read in full: University Course to Study


sources linked above

Eating Disorders In The News: August 2010

Judge OKs $55K Anorexia Bullying Settlement in Pa.

PITTSBURGH —  A federal judge on Wednesday approved letting Pittsburgh Public Schools pay $55,000 to settle what's believed to be a first-of-its-kind lawsuit by a woman who claims her daughter was bullied into anorexia - even though the plaintiffs now feel slighted.

The 37-year-old woman identified only as "Mary V." in court documents, and her daughter, now 15, sued last August over harassment by boys during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 school years, when the girl was in sixth and seventh grade.

The girl's mother now pays about $6,000 a year for the girl to attend private school, attorney Edward Olds told U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose on Wednesday. That tuition was apparently part of the reason the woman and her daughter were upset that the judge enforced a settlement agreement signed in May after a five-hour mediation session.
Read in full: Anorexia Bullying Settlement


Why Airbrushing of FashionPhotos is so Dangerous

WITH impossibly thin waistlines, they have been airbrushed to perfection.

Photographs of waif-like celebrities and models are impossible to escape as they stare out from magazine covers or TV adverts.

Now two young women from Hampshire battling anorexia and bulimia have spoken out to back a new campaign to make sure altered images are labelled.

Girlguiding UK has called for the coalition Government to force the media to take the measures to protect young women.

It says its research shows half of 16- to 21-year-old girls consider having surgery to change the way they look, with 42 per cent of 11- to 16-year-olds admitting to watching what they eat. 
Read in full: Airbrushing Dangerous


 Gaga's Battles With Bulimia

She’s big news. Named on Time Magazine’s list of most influential people in the world and seller of 5 million albums and over 40 million singles worldwide, Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, better known as Lady Gaga, has made news yet again: by talking about her struggles with bulimia. This month’s Vanity Fair cover story details the exploits of pop diva Gaga, including her eating disorder.

Gaga follows a long list of celebrities who have had eating disorders, including Alanis Morissette, Amy Winehouse, Renee Zellweger, Elton John and Karen Carpenter. Celebrities are under tremendous image pressure -- pressure to be thin and fashionable. Gaga was inspired by glam artists Madonna and David Bowie who meld their music with artistry based on clothing, makeup and hair. Gaga is considered a fashion trailblazer, and receives as much attention for her appearance as she does her often synthesized music.
Read in full: Gaga's Battles Bulmia


The Unattainable Lightness of Being: Eating Disorder Madness

Is someone you know on a diet? Probably. Because just about everyone is on a diet, or at least watching their weight, or their carbs or their intake of fats and sugars. But when does normal moderation become not so normal? Is it when you start to see the outlines of ribs and bones that weren't there before? The situation doesn't have to become that extreme for someone to be suffering from an eating disorder. Over 5 million people in the United States have an eating disorder, and the majority are female. But the number is probably higher since so many cases go unreported.

We know the main names: anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. But what many people may not know is how dangerous, debilitating and potentially fatal eating disorders can be. Patients with anorexia nervosa have a disturbed body image, an intense fear of gaining weight and pursue being thin at all costs. They are unwilling to maintain a healthy weight. Bulimia is characterized by episodes of compulsive eating, then purging through vomiting, excessive use of laxatives or diuretics fasting, and excessive exercise. With anorexia, bulimia or other eating disorders not otherwise specified, sometimes referred to as EDNOS, extremely disturbed eating behavior becomes a viable method of altering a perceived (and usually distorted) negative body image.

The Health Risks of Eating Disorders
While it is true that eating disorders are usually, but not always, curable medical illnesses, their underlying causes are so varied and complex, they can be extremely challenging to treat. They have been found to recur within families, can result from disturbances in the central nervous system and are often associated with temperamental features like perfectionism, low self-esteem or an extreme need for control. Those with eating disorders often display other psychiatric illnesses like clinical depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, substance abuse or anxiety disorder.
Read in full: Eating Disorder Madness


Local Girl Speaks Out About Eating Disorders

COLUMBUS, Ohio --A local girl is speaking out about her six-year battle with an eating disorder and said that as college students head back to campus, now may be the time to have a tough conversation.

Julia Weisenborn is a born runner, born competitor, and surviving an eating disorder.

"It becomes very addicting and a lot of times, it's a control thing," she said.

Weisenborn was a student at Ohio University enjoying time with her friends, medaling at cross country meets and playing a dangerous game with her weight to become more competitive.

"The worst point was just after my 20th birthday. I was performing the best but I was at the lowest body weight I'd ever been…close to 80 pounds and my body just gave out," she said.

Weisenborn said she had simply stopped eating.

"I spent a night in cardiac wing and that's when I realized I needed help," she said.
 Read in full: Local Girl Speaks Out



Mary-Kate Olson: Childhood Acting, Anorexia Not Enough To Regret $100M Net Worth  

Mary-Kate Olson says she's happy and healthy after her battle with anorexia. While she says she's happy in her day job now, she looks back and feels "bittersweet" sorrow for her childhood days.

Working as a child actress as the adored "Michelle" on Full House, Mary-Kate says looking back she felt like a workhorse.

"Little monkey performers," Mary-Kate said of her past in the recent interview as Marie Claire's covergirl. "I look at old photos of me, and I don't feel connected to them at all".
 Read in full: Mary-Kate Olson


What Parents Can Do About Anorexia

Regarding the Aug. 1 article, "Wrenching Question Haunts Family After Death of Athlete, 16, from Complication of Anorexia," on the tragic death of Kingsley's Krista Phelps from anorexia:

I know her parents' sorrow. We lost a daughter who just wanted to shed 50 pounds too quickly - for her 20th high school reunion. Margaret leaned too hard on DIEuretics (aptly named) and appetite suppressants.

In just three months since Christmas when we last saw her, she had almost achieved her goal. It was to be a surprise. She did not tell us, so we could not make her more aware of the dangers of fast dieting using pills.

More books need to be written; more articles need to be read that will help teens return to the saving path of moderation. Too many kids equate moderation with mediocrity.
Read in full: What Parents Can Do

Eating Disorders In The News: April 29, 2010

Bill Aids Eating Disorder Care

By Tara Bannow mndaily.com

An act propelled by two Minnesota senators seeks to improve the plight of those suffering from eating disorders and prevent future cases from starting.

The Freed Act would allocate research money to the National Institutes of Health to better investigate the causes of eating disorders and improve treatment methods. The research would also seek to improve public data on eating disorders, including morbidity and mortality rates.

The act was sponsored Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., and recently introduced by Sens. Amy Klobuchar D-Minn., and Tom Harkin, D-Iowa.

“The fact is, we don’t know nearly enough about diagnosing, treating and preventing these diseases,” Franken wrote in a statement. “Today’s legislation is a major step forward in understanding eating disorders and how to stop them from destroying lives.”

When patients with less obvious eating disorders visit their doctors, it’s not uncommon for them to hear lines like “You look great, I wish all my patients looked like you,” said Jeanine Cogan, policy director of the Eating Disorders Coalition.

Read Bill Aids Eating Disorder Care in full.

A Better Body Image

By Molly Logan Anderson Uticaod.com

Can you feel the excitement in the air as school-age kids enter the summer months? Free of their tight schedule and normal routine, warm weather offers kids plenty of opportunities for fun in the sun and time with friends. Unfortunately, the same activities that kids enjoy so much can also cause anxiety about their appearance.For teens, tweens and even elementary-age children, physical appearance is a top concern. If parents start early and are consistent with positive body-image messages, children will be better able to avoid disordered eating patterns down the line.

According to the National Eating Disorders Association, a 1991 study found that 42 percent of first- through third-grade girls would like to be thinner. Another study that same year determined that 81 percent of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat. Statistics like these suggest that a cultural bias toward thinness is leading our youth to value a particular size at a very young age. Parental guidance is more important than ever.

Why do kids care?

It seems as if childhood concerns regarding weight and appearance start earlier and earlier.

“I think the struggles affect kids at a much younger age,” says Kathy Kater, LICSW, psychotherapist and author of “Healthy Body Image: Teaching Kids to Eat and Love Their Bodies Too!”

Read A Better Body Image in full.

Fairmount Performing Arts Center play examines baffling world of food and body image

Cleveland.com


Amy is a teen who is happy to bake her dad his favorite chocolate cake for his birthday, but doesn't trust herself to eat one bite. Instead, she heads to her bedroom and madly runs in place to burn the calories she consumed at the family dinner.

Fortysomething "Calorie Woman" can spout off the number of calories in the most complicated "grande" coffee drink at Starbucks -- though she only orders the nonfat, sugar-free version, and panics when she tastes whole-milk foam added by mistake.

Read Fairmount Performing Arts in full.


Portland's Zoe Yates Tells Of Battle Back From Anorexia

Dorset Echo

A TEENAGER who fought against anorexia is warning others of the dangers posed by eating disorders.

Zoe Yates, from Portland, spent five years battling anorexia and ended up being sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

Her weight plummeted to under five stone as she refused to eat and spent prolonged periods in hospital.

Zoe, 19, is now well on her way to recovery and has used her savings to book an eight-week adventure in Southern India. She will be traveling with a friend who she met in hospital and together they will be going to volunteer in an orphanage.

Read Zoe's story in full

Way To Go! Rebecca Allen Of Roslyn High School

Newsday.com

Rebecca Allen knows firsthand about the dangers of eating disorders.

Allen, a Roslyn High School senior, was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa in 2006, and missed the start of her freshman year because she was admitted to Schneider Children's Hospital. Since then, Allen initiated the idea for Project HEAL, a nonprofit that gives funding to people battling eating disorders who can't afford treatment, which can be $30,000 a month, she said. So far, she's raised some $100,000.

"Insurance rarely covers eating disorders," Allen, 17, said. "I saw people firsthand being turned down for treatment."

Read Rebecca's story in full.



HBS Fashionably Fights Eating Disorders

Thecrimson.com

April is the month for fashion shows with a cause, it seems, and on April 13, the Harvard Business School’s Retail and Apparel Club hosted its 7th annual HBS fashion show at Mantra, a restaurant in downtown Boston. Every year, the fashion show aims to raise awareness for a selected charity “through the lens of fashion,” according to a press kit for the fashion show.

This year, the students celebrated beautiful people, beautiful clothes, and beautiful bodies in an effort to raise awareness for this year’s charity, the Harris Center for Education and Advocacy in Eating Disorders at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Read HBS in full.


German school takes teenagers to see cremations of young people to warn them of the dangers of addiction

DailyMail

A German town has begun taking teenagers to witness cremations of young people killed through drink or drugs in a bid to wean them from a life of addictions.

Children aged between 14 and 16 in Meissen now have to go at least once to the town crematorium to see the coffins of young victims burned in the 920 degree oven.

They are also shown the ashes, a machine which grinds bones to dust and the remains of false teeth that melt into unidentifiable bits of metal in the flames.

The shock-therapy, a new concept in Germany which normally does its best to shield children from the grim realities of the adult world, is being observed by other cities and towns with a view to copying it.

This week 40 youngsters from the Ebersbacher Middle School in the town stood in the chilly cool room of the crematorium among 200 corpses awaiting cremation.

Read about the cremations in full.


*article sources linked above.
picture source:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/deano/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Eating Disorders In The News: April 03, 2010

Binge Eating Disorder: The Emotional Roots of a Physical Condition
Huffington Post: Sunny Gold

Something happened this morning in a nondescript "multipurpose room" on the campus of Pace University that could end up saving (literally) tens of thousands of lives. The Stop Obesity Alliance, the National Eating Disorders Association and key members of the mass media--three groups which, throughout the years have often been at loggerheads--got together for a long overdue talk. The subject? How the three groups can come together for the greatest good and talk about weight and health in a new, better way. I was there, in part, because I'm kind of a walking, breathing chimera of all three groups. I am recovered from binge eating disorder (BED) and obesity (I weighed 225 pounds during college, when my bingeing was at its worst), and I'm also a long-time health editor at Glamour magazine.

I've covered the health risks of obesity, smart nutrition and healthy weight loss--among many other women's health topics--for years. And, perhaps because of my personal history of BED, have often wondered why (oh God, why?) more obesity research and discussion of the obesity epidemic didn't focus on "disordered" eating. Of course obesity isn't an eating disorder, but it's undeniable that many people who are obese have one! Research has found that 10 to 15 percent of mildly obese individuals have BED, and it's been reported that many, many more engage in binge eating episodes. And we know from other research that binge eating creates real physiological changes in the brain that reinforce more binge eating, and therefore more depression, weight gain, obsession, dieting and ultimately, bingeing again. Except for patients lucky enough to be seen by top respected obesity treatment institutions, most obese people are treated for the physical symptoms and tangible causes of their ills--but not the emotional and mental roots.
Binge Eating Disorder: The Emotional Roots of a Physical Condition in full.



Rats Fed On Bacon, Cheesecake, and Ding-Dongs Become Addicted to Junk Food
Discover Magazine

Do you often feel the need for a sweet sugar rush or a moment of bacon-induced bliss? A new study offers evidence that that surge of pleasure is similar to a heroin high, and that eating junk food regularly can significantly change the brain’s chemical make-up, creating junk food addicts who are driven to overeat.

Lead researcher Paul Kenny says it had previously been unclear whether extreme overeating was initiated by a chemical irregularity in the brain or if the behavior itself was changing the brain’s biochemical makeup. The new research by Kenny and his colleague Paul Johnson, a graduate student, shows that both conditions are possible [Scientific American].
Rats Fed On Bacon, Cheesecake, and Ding-Dongs Become Addicted to Junk Food in full



Book and Talking Therapy Helped Binge Eaters Cut Down, US Study
Medical News Today

New research from the US found that reading a self-help book and 12 weeks of talking therapy helped binge eaters cut down for up to a year, and saved them money.

Two studies on the research, by investigators from the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, Wesleyan University and Rutgers University, are due to be published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

Affecting around 9 million Americans, or more than 3 per cent of the population, binge eating is the most common eating disorder in the US, yet there aren't many ways to treat it.

The condition has received a lot press recently because the American Psychiatric Association has recommended it be regarded as a separate, distinct eating disorder like bulimia and anorexia. This distinction could focus more attention on bingeing and how it should be treated, as well as affect the numbers diagnosed and how insurers will cover treatment, noted the authors.
Book and Talking Therapy Helped Binge Eaters Cut Down, US Study in full.


Emily's Mother Told Her She Wasn't Welcome at Home While She Was Anorexic-So Did Tough Love Work?
DailyMail

After ten years of watching her beautiful and academically gifted daughter wasting away before her eyes, Sue Blackmore snapped.

Weighing less than six stone, Oxford graduate Emily Troscianko was little more than skin and bone, but she seemed determined to starve herself to death.

Overwhelmed by sadness, helplessness and anger, Sue suddenly realised she could no longer tolerate this 'ghost' sucking the life out of the family.

'Your anorexia is not welcome at our new house,' she told Emily on the phone, as they talked about the planned family move from Bristol to Devon.

Emily's Mother Told Her She Wasn't Welcome at Home While She Was Anorexic-So Did Tough Love Work? in full.

How Bristol Uni Thinks Plate Will Help Eating Disorders BBC

As Bristol University applies for funding to use a computerised plate which weighs food, Matthew Hill travels to Sweden to find out how effective it can be.

It's spaghetti carbonara and fresh salad on the menu at this specialist clinic for patients with eating disorders at Stockholm's prestigious Karolinska Institute.

Marisa Berzens is one of some 30 young women and teenagers tucking into their plate of food, perched on a pre-programmed device called a Mandometer, which tells them if they are eating enough and at the right speed.

Only weeks ago many of the patients were only able to consume, and keep down, a dangerously small amount of food.

Marisa, 23, flew all the way from Australia for her treatment. When she arrived for the seven-week course she weighed just over six stone (35kg) but she is already a much healthier weight.

Throughout her teenage years the former opera singer struggled with bulimia nervosa.

How Bristol Uni Thinks Plate Will Help Eating Disorders in full

Eating Disorders News: March 2010

Exploring Diabetes' Link To Eating Disorders
Medical News Today

Diabetics, under the gun to better manage their disease by controlling their food intake and weight, may find themselves in the sticky wicket of needing treatment that makes them hungry, researchers said.

Attempts to maintain healthy blood sugar levels and prevent weight gain may suggest an eating disorder when the disease and its treatment are to blame, said Dr. Deborah Young-Hyman, pediatric psychologist at the Medical College of Georgia's Georgia Prevention Institute.

"You can't use the same criteria to diagnose eating disorders that you use in non-diabetic populations because what we actually prescribe as part of diabetes treatment is part of disordered eating behavior. Food preoccupation is one example," she said.

Preoccupation with food, in fact, is required for optimal disease management. Questions like "What are you putting in your mouth? Did you know that was going to raise your blood sugar?" are a part of life, Dr. Young-Hyman said. Young women, and increasingly young men, also are not immune from societal pressures to be thin, she noted.

continued: Exploring Diabetes' Link To Eating Disorders



March Is Nutrition Month
News-Tribune

National Nutrition Month is a campaign that focuses on the importance of helping children and teens make healthy food choices and develop sound eating and physical activity habits. Estimates of the number of overweight children range from a low of 13% to a high of 30%, having doubled since the early 1970s. This means that approximately 6 million children could be at-risk for current and future self-esteem and health problems. On the other side of the weight issue, an estimated 7 million girls and 1 million boys have an eating disorder. The age of onset of these potentially life threatening disorders is getting lower, with children as young as seven being diagnosed.

Weight is determined by a variety of factors: genetics, environment, activity, and emotions. With respect to the psychology of eating problems, some of the same feelings can both result from and lead tounhealthy eating behaviors. For example, it is unclear if such feelings as loneliness, sadness, anger, anxiety, lack of control, worthlessness, low self-esteem, or disordered body image are the cause or the effect of eating problems.

When dealing with children and weight issues, avoid calling attention to the child’s weight. Nagging is unsuccessful when you’re trying to change behavior. To a child, pressure to lose weight can feel like a crushing criticism and ultimately backfire. Praising and encouraging children in other areas will go farther with respect to improving their self-esteem.

continued: March Is Nutrition Month



Eating Disorders Can Affect Anyone
The Southern

Diets and weight loss have been a very popular issue among college students. Many students have gone over board with weight loss and developed many different eating disorders.

According to American Medical Journal, an estimated 10 percent of female college students suffer from a clinical or sub-clinical eating disorder, of which over half suffer from bulimia nervosa.

An estimated one in one hundred American women binges and purges to lose weight. Approximately five percent of women and one percent of men have anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or binge eating disorder, according to the American Journal.

Kathy Picate, Florida Southern College's health advocate, talks to many different students who struggle with day-to-day eating issues.

"Its very sad to see students struggle with eating disorders," Picate said. "They have food or their weight on their mind all the time. Many people would be surprised with how many students suffer from these disorders."

Not only do women students suffer from the pressures of being thin, but men also struggle with many eating disorders.

According to Men's health magazine, studies suggest that five to ten percent of people with anorexia or bulimia are males.

continued: Eating Disorders Can Affect Anyone



New TV Show Perpetuates Anorexia Myths
Discovery News

A new VH1 show called “The Price of Beauty,” hosted by Jessica Simpson, will premiere soon. The theme of the show is the extreme measures that some women will endure to look beautiful. It’s a worthy subject, but unfortunately the series is already spreading misinformation about a serious disease: anorexia.

In one of the first episodes, Simpson and her friends interview former model Isabelle Caro, who suffers from anorexia. Caro made international news a few years ago by putting a photo of her emaciated frame on billboards. She is now an activist trying to pass a law prohibiting very thin women from becoming professional models.

Simpson told Oprah in a recent interview, "It makes me very emotional because just the pressure that women feel to be thin or to be beautiful--the pressure that the media puts on women--is so unfair and so disgusting." The show’s efforts seem sincere, but its understanding of anorexia leaves much to be desired. The concern over thin models is nothing new, to either the media or the fashion industry.

What Isabelle Caro, Jessica Simpson, and the VH1 show don’t realize is that anorexia has little or nothing to do with fashion modeling. Eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia are biological diseases, not voluntary behaviors. The idea that a model, photo of a model, or Web site can "encourage" anorexia is not supported by science or research. Images of thin people cannot "encourage" anorexia, any more than photographs of bipolar patients "encourage" bipolar disorder, or photos of diabetics "encourage" diabetes.

Though many people are convinced that anorexia is a threat to most young women because of the media images they see, that’s not what the scientific evidence says. Anorexia is a very rare and complex psychological disorder with many indications of a strong genetic component; as anorexia expert Cynthia Bulik noted in her 2007 study “The Genetics of Anorexia,” published in the Annual Review of Nutrition, “Family studies have consistently demonstrated that anorexia nervosa runs in families.” Most research studies have failed to find a cause-and-effect link between media images of thin people and eating disorders.

continued: New TV Show Perpetuates Anorexia Myths



Only The Beautiful Need Apply
Medical News Today

New study flags damaging effect of joining a sorority on body image and eating behaviors.

Undergraduate women who join a sorority are more likely to judge their own bodies from an outsider's perspective (known as self-objectification) and display higher levels of bulimic attitudes and behaviors than those who do not take part in the sorority's recruitment process. Over time, those women who join the group also show higher levels of body shame. These findings, part of Ashley Marie Rolnik's senior honors thesis at Northwestern University in the US, are published online in Springer's journal Sex Roles.

On college campuses across the US, thousands of women join sororities every year through a structured recruitment process - the sorority rush. Although these sisterhoods provide college women with opportunities for personal growth and enrichment, they have been criticized for their potential to lead their members to focus excessively and unhealthily on their appearance.

continued: Only The Beautiful Need Apply



More Eating Disorders For Women Over 30
Sun-Times

Eating disorders are usually seen as a problem of girls and young women. But experts say they're seeing more women in their 30s, 40s and even older seeking treatment for anorexia, bulimia and binge eating.

"We went, literally, from having zero at any given time to having a subgroup of anywhere from five to 10 . . . It's a big increase," said Kimberly Dennis, the medical director at Timberline Knolls, a residential treatment center in Lemont for eating disorders and substance abuse.

Lynn Grefe, chief executive officer of the National Eating Disorders Association, said the group hasn't done formal research on the trend, but, "anecdotally, we are hearing more and more cases of women over 30" seeking treatment.

continued: More Eating Disorders For Women Over 30


sources linked in articles above

Eating Disorders: In The News December 2009

Eating Disorder Organizations Join Forces To Urge Focus On Health And Lifestyle Rather Than Weight

Medical News Today

In an unprecedented show of concern, The Academy for Eating Disorders (AED), Binge Eating Disorder Association (BEDA), Eating Disorder Coalition (EDC), International Association for Eating Disorder Professionals (IADEP), and National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) have joined forces and are urging focus on health and lifestyle rather than weight as a measurement of well-being.

In late November, media stories reported that an American university implemented a new strategy for combating rising weights by requiring students to be weighed during their freshman year. Those with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or over are required either to lose weight or pass an extra course focused on physical fitness. In response to this, and other similar strategies within the global "war against obesity", national and international eating disorder organizations have joined forces to urge school administrators, employers, and health policy makers to focus more on health and lifestyle for all populations rather than on weight alone. Eating disorder groups assert that this well-intended, but under-informed and unproven strategy of focusing on BMI fuels weight-prejudice and neglects groups which may be in equal need of improving their health and lifestyle. There is concern that, in some cases, the programs contribute to negative self-esteem, body dissatisfaction and eating disordered behaviors among young people. Neither the scale nor BMI calculation provide the full picture most relevant to health status, such as lifestyle and activity patterns, and physical and mental health measures. Thus, assuming ill health based on weight alone is not only inappropriate but harmful and discriminatory, and should be discontinued.

"There is concern that we have lost sight of avoiding harm in the process of addressing obesity." AED President Susan Paxton, PhD, FAED states. "Further, we cannot ignore the opportunity to create a healthier environment, where people of all sizes are given the opportunity to lead healthy and productive lives, instead of singling out individual groups for reform based on weight alone".

Read in full here.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

New Eating Disorder Specialist Library Launched To Help Eating Disorder Sufferers, Family, Friends, And Health Providers Find Help

Earth Times

Finding treatment for eating disorders is an overwhelming task for those suffering from eating disorders and the loved ones trying to help them. To solve this problem, Eating Disorder Hope launched the Eating Disorder Specialist Library, to provide a comprehensive resource for exploring and comparing treatment options, providers, treatment approaches and philosophy. All accessible in one library, saving hours of searching the web for options. (PRWEB) November 15, 2009 -- Many eating disorder sufferers and families find that reviewing the online ‘virtual brochures’ offered in the http://www.eatingdisorderhope.com/eating-disorder-specialist-library-index.html greatly simplifies their search and puts them in touch with some of the best treatment centers and providers for their loved one suffering from anorexia, bulimia or binge eating disorder. This new and rapidly expanding eating disorder specialist library is an excellent tool for eating disorder sufferers, families, fri and treatment providers who feel overwhelmed with where to begin in the search for appropriate care for the eating disorder sufferer.

Read in full here.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

New Help For Those Battling Eating Disorders

Fox4kc

KANSAS CITY, MO - It's estimated that five to 10 percent of people in the Kansas City area have an eating disorder. Girls ages eight to 25 are most at risk, but certainly not the only ones affected. But now, there's a new way to get help.

Fourteen-year-old Alexis Gick is one of those seeking a solution.

"All I wanted was just help from this," she said. "I didn't want to be stuck in this."

Gick battles anorexia and bulimia. What little she did eat, she would purge.

"It was out of my control," said Wendy Gick, mother. "I couldn't do anything to help her. I think that was the scariest part."

Wendy turned to a therapist, who referred them to specialists in eating disorders.

"I was very lucky that I had some very good referrals," Wendy said.

But she knows others don't know where to turn.

"They're not even sure what's going on other than maybe their child's a finicky eater or has been losing weight or has been purging and they don't really know what to do with this," said Mary Beth Blackwell with Jewish Family Services. "Sometimes they've never even heard of an eating disorder."

Jewish Family Services is now launching an Eating Disorder Resource Center for the Kansas City area with a phone number people can call with questions about eating disorders.

Read in full here.

--------------------------------------------------


How To Help Your Kids Avoid Eating Disorders

Newsday

Know anyone with food issues? Chances are, you know many - and maybe you're one of them. In today's world of fast and convenient food, many people have disordered eating. The evidence of obesity, anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and a national obsession with dieting is proof we aren't eating healthfully. The problem is that many of the people with unhealthy relationships to food are parents, and that makes them - wittingly or not - role models for their children.

Research shows parents are the biggest influences of their children's behavior, so that means what parents do, not what they say, is often emulated by their fiercely observant offspring. And though most parents hope to raise healthy eaters, many are blind to how their own harmful attitudes and behaviors are affecting their children.

Here are five tips from Edward Abramson, a psychologist who works closely with children and adults with eating issues and author of "Emotional Eating."

1. Avoid diets Parents who want to foster a healthy relationship with food should never put their children on a diet, which usually becomes counterproductive and actually increases the likelihood of future weight gain and subsequent emotional issues. "The focus should always be on improving health and not on weight," Abramson notes. Parents should implement healthier family habits, such as eating reasonable portions and even cooking together.

Read in full here.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Researchers Find Clues To Why Some Continue To Eat When Full

Medical News Today

The premise that hunger makes food look more appealing is a widely held belief just ask those who cruise grocery store aisles on an empty stomach, only to go home with a full basket and an empty wallet.

Prior research studies have suggested that the so-called hunger hormone ghrelin, which the body produces when it's hungry, might act on the brain to trigger this behavior. New research in mice by UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists suggest that ghrelin might also work in the brain to make some people keep eating "pleasurable" foods when they're already full.

Read in full here.

-----------------------------------------------

Food Apps For Mobile Devices May Fuel Eating Disorders

News Channel 6

The smart phone applications that help find restaurants, identify songs, and even read bar codes, may be fueling eating disorders.

Read in full here.

Eating Disorders In The News: May 2009

Will Anorexia Nervosa Receive More Funding As The Number Of Male Anorexic Increase?

People ask why I write about the painful subject of my daughter’s anorexia and eventual death. I’ve explained a few reasons in past articles, but there’s one more.

You see I just can’t stand that my loved daughter has become a statistic of the disease of anorexia. And I want people to learn, as I’m sure all moms would, that this young woman had a mom and dad, a sister, aunts and uncles, grandparents, friends and enemies, talents and shortcomings, loves and hates. In other words a life, not a perfect life, but what could have been a wonderful life. I want people to see Meg as a complex human being not a statistic. That’s why I write.

To continue, after losing over thirty lbs in her senior year of high school, Meg entered college looking great at 126 lbs. She came home for Thanksgiving weighing 114 lbs; came home for Christmas weighing 108.

During the Thanksgiving holidays, we talked to Meg about losing so much weight. But since she lost another six pounds from Thanksgiving break to her Christmas break, which amounted to a mere three weeks, she obviously hadn’t listened. I was so worried that I made an appointment with a psychologist who specialized in anorexia. Her face expressionless and her body tense with anger, Meg begrudgingly went to the appointment with me. But there was a problem. Meg turned eighteen the April before she started college: This seemingly minor detail became a major stumbling block during Meg’s seventeen year battle with anorexia.

Since Meg was eighteen, she could be seen by the doctor alone, and of course she chose to do so. And I had no legal right to stop her; at that point, I didn’t feel I should after all this was her first appointment for anorexia. Meg came to her appointment dressed in a fairly short skirt, thick tights and a long-sleeved sweatshirt. Now like me, Meg holds a good deal of her weight in her legs which were quite visible; nevertheless, her skinny arms and ribs were not. As I’ve said before, Meg was smart, smarter than I realized. The camouflage dressing trick went unnoticed by me for a while. In addition, Meg always portrayed herself, to others, as a capable young woman who has no problems except a mother who worries. After her appointment, the doctor said he really didn’t think we should be concerned about Meg. He informed me that many college freshmen either gain or lose weight while adjusting to their new lives. Obviously, the psychologist was deceived by her dress and her confident manner. So much for catching anorexia early.

Looking back, this is another example of the “insightful” advice we received from the medical profession about Meg’s overweight and underweight conditions.

Read in full here.

--------------------------------------------------

Help For Those Struggling With Eating Disorders

While many individuals struggle with trying to lose weight, others have a difficult time trying to gain weight.

Whether someone seeks to recover from an eating disorder, manage a long-term illness (such as cancer, Alzheimer's disease, an autoimmune disorder or food sensitivities/allergies), needs to gain weight for sport or simply aims to try to gain a healthy body weight, healthy weight gain can often present many challenges.

For one, an individual may not wish to gain weight, but needs to do so for health reasons. Perhaps this is someone with an eating disorder. If the individual is a minor, a parent is often the one seeking out healthful ways to encourage his or her child's weight gain at an appropriate rate. In these situations, it is imperative to work with a team of health professionals who specialize in eating disorders, including a physician, psychotherapist, dietitian and perhaps a psychiatrist as well. In this way, the parents do not become the "food police," interrogating children at every meal and snack, nor do they choose unhealthy ways to gain weight (such as forcing unhealthful foods into a child's diet). Additionally, the team can address underlying concerns and focus on whole body recovery, rather than just the weight restoration.

Another reason someone may be struggling with gaining weight is simply a side effect of having an illness. This can happen with Alzheimer's, where an individual forgets to eat or forgets how to eat, or cancer, where the body's reserves are being depleted at an accelerated rate.

Men, as well as women, can struggle with putting on weight, while trying to achieve high muscle mass for sport. With intense exercise, it is essential to consume enough calories to not only avoid unwanted weight loss, but also to achieve healthy lean muscle mass. Working with a dietitian who specializes in sports nutrition is helpful in this situation.

Read in full here.

-----------------------------------------------------

New Nonprofit Organization Targets Binge Eaters

These days, stress causes Chevese Turner to reach for a handful of potato chips and then feel disgusted.

But nearly a decade ago, difficult times would send her to finish off an entire bag of potato chips, or even go to McDonald's and eat several sandwiches.

That was before she was diagnosed as a binge eater. Now the Severna Park resident has created a nonprofit organization aimed at helping people with illnesses like hers.

Turner said she hopes her new organization, Binge Eating Disorder Association, will help other sufferers realize help is available. The group is planning a conference in June that will feature panel discussions and workshops about the disorder, and its Web site - www.bedaonline.com - provides links to resources, assistance and information about binge eating.

Turner's struggles with the illness also were recently featured in a "Good Morning America" segment on eating disorders.

"I still have my moments," Turner said. "It's a longterm thing. It's not something that changes overnight. I've done a lot of work and now I'm at a place where I manage my food intake."

Read in full here.

----------------------------------------------------

Plans To Ban Internet Sites That Promote Diet Disease Anorexia

WEBSITES that promote anorexia are facing a campaign to outlaw them.

MSPs want the UK Government to introduce laws that fine or jail owners of sites promoting self-harm.

There are around 500 "pro-ana" websites promoting the eating disorder which kills up to one in 10 sufferers.

Many show disturbing images of anorexics and offer tips on vomiting and using laxatives to lose weight.

Tv presenter Fearne Cotton is furious at the sites after one portrayed her as a role model.

The SNP's Kenneth Gibson, backed in a Scottish Parliament motion by fellow MSPs, called on Westminster to crack down on the websites.

More than 80,000 people in Scotland are estimated to suffer from anorexia.

Gibson said: "I am deeply concerned about sites that portray anorexia as a glamorous lifestyle choice rather than potentially fatal with the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric illness.

"Messages on these sites fiercely defend weight loss as an act of self-control to be admired.

Read in full here.

-----------------------------------------------------

Learning To Love Every Inch Of Your Body

Food and weight issues for young girls and women have long been a battle to conquer.

But a researcher and author who specializes in body image says boys and men are joining the ranks of the body obsessed.

'I'm, Like, So Fat!, author Dianne Neumark-Sztainer shared this insight with an audience of parents, teens and professionals last week a workshop entitled: Eating in a Weight-Obsessed World: Helping your child have a healthy body image and healthy weight.

Hosted by the National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC) in Toronto, Neumark-Sztainer covered a multitude of topics affecting our youth with the goal of helping them to achieve healthy bodies and body images.

With a society placing emphasis on being thin as the ideal, it can be a difficult task, but initially she said parents have to identify their child has a weight or body image issue, decide how to bring it up to them and address the potential problem.

"It's important to bring up the problem when both you and your child are not upset," she said. "Tell them what you've noticed, for example, 'I heard you vomiting' and I'm concerned.'"

Once you've done this, Neumark-Sztainer said you will get a mixed reaction of "relief, anger and fear," but at least now there's a dialogue and an opportunity to seek help.

There are many factors contributing to weight and body image issues, many of which come from society. Media, like television and magazines, and movies and music videos, are filled with thin people, but in food ads, portion sizes are huge, which sends mixed-messages.

"Not only are models' pictures being modified, but so are food advertisements so they look bigger than they really are so they look better," she said.

Read in full here.

-----------------------------------------------------

Parent's Plea: Send Charlotte Home

THE parents of the jailed Swedish woman Charlotte Lindstrom have spoken out for the first time to beg Australian authorities to let their daughter transfer to a jail in Sweden, saying they fear her anorexia will kill her if she stays in Australia.

"We are deeply concerned and worried for our daughter's life," Anita and Hans Lindstrom told the Herald in a statement, their first since their daughter's arrest.

They said she had been treated well in jail but four Australian doctors had recommended that she be transferred to Sweden, where she could be supported by her family, feel safer and avoid the stress of directly facing her former fiance in court.

Lindstrom, 24, is in solitary confinement in a NSW prison due to threats to her life. Her family says her health is so fragile that she could suffer heart failure.

Lindstrom will be the key witness in her former fiance's drug trial, which is due to begin in a few months. The Swedish Government has offered to cover both the costs of the transfer and of a video link so she could give evidence from Sweden.

But NSW authorities say the testimony - which could take 15 days - is essential to the prosecution case and could be inadequate if given via video link from Sweden.

Read in full here.

sources linked above.