(n = 127)
BMI, body mass index; EDs, eating disorders
As listed in the Table 2 , patients analyzed in this study had comorbidity.
Comorbidities detected in ED patients
Comorbidities | Percentage of ED patients |
---|---|
Amenorrhea | 64% of female patients |
Lymphocytopenia | 100% |
Neutropenia | 38% |
Thrombocytopenia | 13.4% |
Bradycardia | 60.6% |
Hypovitaminosis | 93.5% |
Effusion | 10.2% |
Hypercreatinemia | 7% |
Hyperazotemia | 7% |
Depression | 14% |
Anxiety | 3.9% |
Psychosis | 4.7% |
Specific learning disorder (SLD) | 3.9% |
Multiple psychiatric disorders | 13.4% |
A high percentage of females (64%) had amenorrhea. All patients had low lymphocytopenia, while 38% of patients had neutropenia and 13.4% of patients had thrombocytopenia. Many patients had bradycardia (60.6%) and hypovitaminosis (93.5%), while a small percentage (7%) had hypercreatinemia and hyperazotemia. In addition, these patients also had disorders such as depression (14%), anxiety (3.9%), psycosis (4.7%), specific learning disorder (3.9%) or multiple psychiatric disorders (13.4%). Two patients had also attempted suicide.
As previously reported, a high percentage of these patients had hypovitaminosis. In particular, a deficiency of vitamin A (6% of patients); vitamin B1 (7% of patients); vitamin B6 (9.4% of patients); vitamin B12 (6.3% of patients) and vitamin C (27% of patients) was detected (Table 3 ). Moreover, we found that vitamin D3 was deficient in the 22.8% of patients and insufficient in the 42% of patients. In addition, 56.6% of patients had high levels of ferritin, while 7.9% of patients had high levels of thyrotrophic hormone (TSH). Instead, 21% of patients had low levels of vitamin B9 (folic acid), while 21.3% of patients had low levels of thyroxine (FT4) (Table 3 ).
Percentage of patients with variables having a different value from reference values
Patient percentage | Median values | Reference values | |
---|---|---|---|
Vitamin A | 6% | 0.5 (range 0.4–0.7) | 0.7–2.8 µM/mL |
Vitamin B1 | 7% | 27.3 (range 21.3–30.3) | 32–95 ng/ml |
Vitamin B6 | 9.4% | 4.6 (range 0.5–8) | 8.7–27.2 ng/mL |
Vitamin B12 | 6.3% | 199.5 (range 25–287) | 300–900 ng/mL |
Vitamin C | 27% | 15 (range 3.5–24) | 26.1–84.6 µM/L |
Vitamin D3 | 22.8% | 15.96 (range 4.8–19.8) | < 20 ng/ml deficient |
42% | 25.3 (range 20.3–29.5) | < 30 ng/ml insufficient | |
Ferritin | 56.6% | 293 (range 155–990) | 13–150 ng/mL |
TSH | 7.9% | 5 (range 4.37–6.7) | 0.51–4.3µlU/mL |
Vitamin B9 (folic acid) | 21% | 3.54 (range 1.83–4.91) | 5 -27.2 ng/mL |
FT4 | 21.3% | 0.88 (range 0.71–0.96) | 0.98–1.64 ng/dL |
TSH, thyrotrophic hormone; FT4, thyroxine
Considering that all patients have lymphocytopenia as comorbidity, we correlated leukocyte number with some variables. As shown in Table 4 we found that lymphocytes number correlated significantly (p < 0.0001) with body weight (rho = 0.08); BMI (rho = 0.016); neutrophil count (rho = 0.065), vitamin B1 (rho = 0.06); vitamin B6 (0.11); vitamin D3 (rho = 0.02); ferritin (rho = 0.089); sideremia (rho = 0.012); and cholesterol (rho = 0.18). Conversely, no correlation was found between lymphocytes number and vitamin A (rho = -0.14); vitamin B12 (rho = -0.07); vitamin B9 (rho = -0.11); TSH (rho = -0.06); FT4 (rho = -0.104); and triglycerides (rho = -0.19). Moreover, to connect hematological changes detected in ED patients with comorbidity such as bradycardia, amenorrhea, anxiety, and depression, a regression analysis was performed, but no correlations were found.
Correlation between variables
Lymphocytes (rho values) | p values (<) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Body weight | 0.08 | 0.0001 | |
BMI | 0.016 | 0.0001 | |
Neutrophils | 0.065 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin A | -0.14 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin B1 | 0.06 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin B6 | 0.11 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin B9 | − 0.11 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin B12 | − 0.07 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin C | 0.12 | 0.0001 | |
Vitamin D | 0.02 | 0.0001 | |
Ferritin | 0.089 | 0.0001 | |
Sideremia | 0.012 | 0.0001 | |
TSH | − 0.06 | 0.0001 | |
FT4 | − 0.104 | 0.0001 | |
Cholesterol | 0.18 | 0.0001 | |
Triglycerides | − 0.19 | 0.0001 |
BMI, body mass index; TSH, thyrotrophic hormone; FT4, thyroxine
Antipsychotic treatment positively influenced both body weight and BMI of patients. As shown in Fig. 1 , compared to T0, weight increased by 10.4% after 1 month and by 26.2% after 3 months of antipsychotic treatment. Body weight increase after 3 months was significant (p < 0.05). Similarly, the BMI increased by 12.3% after 1 month and by 15% after 3 months of treatment.
A workflow chart of the study
Effects of antipsychotic treatment on body weight and BMI of EDs patients. In the histogram are shown the values of body weight and BMI after 1 and 3 months of treatments with antipsychotics. The values are expressed as delta percentage compared to T0. *p < 0.05
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in restrictions, which had a negative impact on physical activity and eating behavior, especially among young population. Children and adolescents affected by pre-existing eating disorders, being more sensitive to social stress [ 18 ] and having difficulties to control emotions [ 19 ], may be particularly vulnerable. In our retrospective study a group of 127 pediatrics patients with EDs admitted to the Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital of Rome (Italy) during the COVID-19 pandemic were studied and hematologic complications (lymphocytopenia and neutropenia), amenorrhea, bradycardia, alterations in hormone status and psychiatric comorbidities (anxiety and depression) were found.
In patients with anorexia nervosa literature data associate some hematological complications with malnutrition [ 20 ] and state that leukopenia can promote an alteration of the humoral and cellular immune responses [ 21 ]. In this study we found that most of the patients analyzed suffer from hypovitaminosis due to malnutrition. Among the vitamins evaluated, vitamin C, vitamin B9 (folic acid) and vitamin D3 were deficient in a higher percentage of patients (27, 21, and 64.8% respectively). Vitamin C is an antioxidant vitamin that modulates immune cell function and supports a Th1 cytokine-mediated immune response with sufficient production of pro-inflammatory cytokines [ 22 ]. Vitamin B9 plays an essential role in the synthesis of neurotransmitters and structural elements of neurons. Its deficiency has been associated with disorders linked to mental function such as depression and cognitive function impairment [ 23 ]. Vitamin D3 plays important roles in both cell-mediated and humoral antibody response and has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory functions. Its deficiency may be related to cognitive impairment and dementia and increases the risk for acquiring several infectious diseases [ 24 ]. In patients with EDs vitamin D3 deficiency has been correlated with osteoporosis risk, while in patients with long-term EDs might be responsible for the lack of the inflammatory response and the depressive symptoms [ 25 ]. Interestingly, in our study a significant (p < 0.0001) correlation between lymphocytes count, body weight, BMI, and some vitamins (B1, B6, C and D3) was found. The correlation between lymphocytes number, vitamin C and vitamin D leads to assume that these patients have a higher susceptibility to infections. Moreover, in the literature it is reported that for many patients with malnutrition one of the key outcomes is amenorrhea [ 20 ]. In our study we found that the amenorrhea affected a high percentage of females (64%) and that these patients, in addition to low body weight, had lymphocytopenia. On this basis we can assume that in these patients the amenorrhea may be an adaptive, but completely reversible condition to malnutrition [ 20 ].
In adolescent, an excellent indicator of nutritional status is serum concentration of thyroid hormones, being they influenced by both the degree of leanness and the current weight trend. In our study, we found that 7.9% of ED patients had high levels of thyrotrophic hormone (TSH) and that 21.3% of patients had low levels of thyroxine (FT4). Increased levels of TSH and low levels of FT4 are typical of hypothyroidism, most often caused by autoimmune thyroid disease such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT). According to the literature data we found that TSH correlated with some vitamins such as vitamin B1 (rho = 0.025), vitamin B6 (rho = 0.21) and vitamin D3 (rho = 221 0.056) and total cholesterol content (rho = 0.127) [ 26 – 29 ]. Moreover, we found that a small percentage of patients (11.8%) had total cholesterol values higher than the reference values (median values 244.6 mg/dL). This could have important clinical implications and become a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In addition, in many patients (56%) high serum ferritin levels were found. This is probably due to an increase in muscle catabolism that occurs during the loss of the menstrual cycle [ 30 ]. All these results show that there are frequent comorbidities in eating disorders, mainly related to malnutrition, which need to be analyzed.
The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected teens’ eating behavior. The data obtained in this retrospective study show that adolescents who experienced eating disorders during the pandemic, often present comorbidities, and alterations of blood parameters such as leukocytopenia, neutropenia, hypovitaminosis and hormonal problems that could danger their future.
These comorbidities should not be overlooked, but they should be treated in association with psychological treatments.
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Not applicable.
AN | Anorexia nervosa |
ARFID | Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder |
BED | Binge-eating disorder |
BMI | Body mass index |
BN | Bulimia nervosa |
EDs | Eating disorders |
FSH | Follicle- stimulating hormone |
FT4 | Thyroxine |
HT | Hashimoto’s thyroiditis |
SLD | Specific learning disorder |
TSH | Thyrotrophic hormone |
Conceptualization, I.T.J., M.R.M., A.G.; data curation, T.C., C.M., L.G., C.C., C.G.; investigations, I.P.; writing-original draft preparation, E.S.; editing, R.V.; supervision, A.V. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
This research received no external funding.
Declarations.
The study was approved by ethics committee of the Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital of Rome (approval number: 2526-OPBG-2021). Informed written consents were obtained by adult patients and parents of patients under the age of 18.
All methods of this study were carried out in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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Elisabetta Straface, Isabella Tarissi De Jacobis, Alberto Villani and Maria Rosaria Marchili have contributed equally.
Elisabetta Straface, Email: [email protected] .
Isabella Tarissi De Jacobis, Email: [email protected] .
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Introduction: Although there have been qualitative meta-syntheses on experiences of eating disorders treatments, there is a paucity of syntheses specifically examining the perspectives and experiences of eating disorders treatments (ED) in East Asia (EA). Such synthesis could facilitate a better understanding of culture-specific perspectives and experiences. This review complements a quantitative scoping review published on ED treatments in EA (Yim & Schmidt, 2023), where most interventions reviewed focused on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and internet interventions. The present meta-synthesis summarises stakeholders' views on treatments and to synthesise clinical and research recommendations.
Method: A systematic search of five databases and a citation search were conducted to identify relevant studies and data were analysed using thematic synthesis. Out of the 301 studies found, a total of 12 papers were included in the analysis.
Results: A diverse range of treatments, such as family therapy, paediatric/psychiatric inpatient care, CBT, and counselling, were discussed. Three overarching themes were identified: Delineating Physical and Psychological Recovery; 'I am not alone in this battle'; and Barriers to Change. The themes further delve into the various obstacles to recovery, including financial concerns and limited access to professionals and services. Culture-specific factors include family obligations and promoting family harmony. Balancing interdependence and independence from one's family, as well as understanding family body ideals versus broader societal body ideals, are important considerations in ED interventions.
Discussion: Some themes paralleled other qualitative syntheses, highlighting improved family relationships, perceived authoritarianism in treatments, and financial barriers. The review extends beyond the previous findings, revealing nuanced factors like family roles, cultural values, and norms. Clinical recommendations include incorporating family context in treatment and considering cultural influences on body image ideals. Capacity building through telemedicine and increased training is essential for advancing ED treatment in East Asia. Continued research is needed to better understand and treat people affected by ED in EA.
Keywords: Anorexia nervosa; East Asia; Eating disorder; Meta-synthesis; Psychological therapy.
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Eating Disorders and Mimetic Desire René Girard Stanford University Among younger women, eating disorders are reaching epidemic proportions. The most widespread and spectacular at this moment is the most recently identified, the so-called bulimia nervosa, characterized by binge eating followed by "purging," sometimes through laxatives or diuretics, more often through self-induced vomiting. Some researchers claim that, in American colleges, at least one third of the female student population is involved to some degree. (Since nine out of ten sufferers are women I will use feminine pronouns in this paper but some undergraduates at Stanford tell me that the epidemic is spreading to male students.) G.M.F. Russell, the first researcher who focused on the specific aspects ofmodern bulimia, is usually presented as the discoverer of a new illness. The title ofhis 1979 publication contradicts this view: "Bulimia Nervosa: An Ominous Variant ofAnorexiaNervosa." And, indeed, all the symptoms he describes had been mentioned before in connection with anorexia (see Bruch). The insurance companies and the medical profession like only welldefined illnesses, and so does the public. We all try to distance ourselves from pathological contamination by giving it a name. Eating disorders are often discussed as ifthey were new varieties ofmeasles or oftyphoid fever. Why distrust the distinction between two illnesses with symptoms as radically opposed as those of anorexia and bulimia? Because we live in a world where eating too much and not eating enough are opposite but inseparable ways ofcoping with the slenderness imperative that dominates 2 René Girard our collective imaginations. Most of us oscillate all our lives between attenuated forms ofthese two pathologies. The man in the street understands perfectly a truth that most specialists prefer not to confront. Our eating disorders are caused by our compulsive desire to lose weight. Most books on the subject acknowledge the universal calorie phobia but somewhat absent-mindedly, as if it could not be the major cause ofa serious illness. How could a fundamentally healthy desire become the cause ofpathological behavior, even ofdeath? Many people would be healthier, no doubt, ifthey ate less. In view of this fact, it is not illogical to suppose that, in anorexia, there must be some motivation other than this healthy desire, some unconscious drive, no doubt, that generates abnormal behavior. By turning anorexia and bulimia into two separate pathologies, the classificators make it easier for us to lose sight of their common basis. The bankruptcy of modern theories The search for hidden motivations is the alpha and omega, ofcourse, of our modern culture. Our number one principle is that no human phenomenon is really what it seems to be. A satisfactory interpretation must rely on one of the hermeneutics of suspicion that have become popular in the nineteenth and twentieth century, or on several ofthese, on a cocktail of soupçon: psychoanalysis, Marxism, feminism, etc. We automatically assume that social phenomena have little if anything to do with what is obvious in them, in this case the rejection offood. In anorexia, psychoanalysts usually diagnose "a refusal of normal sexuality," due to the patient's excessive desire "to please her father," etc. These explanations are still invoked in books being written right now but the voice is growing fainter. Around this sort of thing the smell of mustiness is overpowering. Even in Lacan's own land, the old arrogance is gone. Early in my life, I had an opportunity to observe that the eating practices ofyoung women have nothing to do with a desire to please their fathers. Just before World War II, a pretty cousin of mine was dieting furiously and her father, my uncle, was storming about helplessly, trying to get her to eat more. Fathers, as a rule, are not pleased to see their daughters starve themselves. This particular father was also a physician, at a time when the medical profession had not yet caught the disease it was already trying to cure. Eating Disorders andMimetic Desire3 This uncle was our family doctor and, as such, had great prestige in my eyes, at least until that day. I had not yet read Freud but my later skepticism regarding his conception offatherhood may well originate in this incident. I immediately...
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Flinders university’s blackbird initiative exists to conduct high-level research and develop effective, evidence-based interventions to improve the lives of people affected by eating disorders.
The prevalence of eating disorders in youth doubled in the five years before the onset of the COVID pandemic, affecting one in six females and one in 40 males. The prevalence increased again significantly over COVID. The evidence suggests that while the mental health of youth was impacted adversely across the board over this time, eating disorders increased more than depression or anxiety. Since the end of lockdowns, there has been a further increase in the prevalence of eating disorders in adolescents, both males and females. Despite the increasing and high prevalence of a disorder with one of the highest mortality rates of any mental illness, only one in four youth receive treatment for an eating disorder.
In 2024 The Lancet Psychiatry Commission called for a transformation in mental health implementation research in real-world settings to overcome barriers to scaling. In addition, among the variety of mental health disorders, eating disorders are uniquely associated with ambivalence and denial, which creates further barriers to engagement in interventions.
This first step of the current project will identify, with a variety of stakeholders, the critical issues that are causing eating disorders to develop in young people. We are seeking to identify transdiagnostic targets, the risk factors that cause an eating disorder, to provide an engaging pathway that sidesteps denial and maximizes use of an intervention. Based on consensus across people with lived experience, caregivers, clinicians and researchers, we will nominate ten early intervention transdiagnostic targets.
The second step of the project is to develop ten different interventions that have previously shown an ability to reduce these risk factors, utilising evidence-based principles that make interventions in mental health more effective e.g., utilising the power of cognitive dissonance by getting the young person to argue for change, personalising interventions.
Another important engagement strategy is packaging the interventions in an app that takes no more than 30 minutes to complete. Young people consistently say that in the field of technology-delivered interventions in mental health, they prefer using mobile versions like apps for smartphones. Development of all the interventions will be conducted in co-design with young people with lived experience of disordered eating.
The third step of the research is testing these brief interventions and identifying those that have the most promising outcomes for decreasing disordered eating in young people. Which interventions work best for who will be a focus of the ongoing research. This will enable us to empower young people, via use of an assessment guide, to curate the selection of interventions that best works for them. This process assessment guide will be made available, along with the apps, as a free resource for use in open, unguided settings.
This work will close a knowledge gap between the increasing prevalence of eating disorders in youth and broad access to effective and engaging interventions. This work can result in young people experiencing better health outcomes sooner. This is critical in a world where sustained effects of the pandemic will continue to be experienced by youth via a higher cost of living, heightened perceived vulnerability to disasters outside of one’s control, erosion of social relationships, and interrupted developmental milestones.
Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor Tracey Wade has worked as a clinician and researcher in eating disorders for over 30 years. She has led improvements in mental health through development and application of new interventions and informing policy to ensure evidence-based service provision.
Tracey is the director of the Blackbird Initiative and the Flinders University Services for Eating Disorders (FUSED). She has cowritten 3 books on cognitive behaviour therapy for eating disorders and perfectionism and has over 300 publications in peer reviewed journals. Her contribution to the field of mental health has been recognised widely.
In 2015 she was elected a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. In 2016 she was made an Inaugural Honorary Fellow of the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy (CBT). In 2019 she was appointed Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society and was a recipient of the Australia and New Zealand Academy of Eating Disorders Distinguished Achievement Award. In 2020 she was the recipient of the Academy of Eating Disorders Outstanding Clinician Award. In 2021 she was given the Channel 7 Children’s Research Foundation Len Frankham award for outstanding achievement in children’s education and wellbeing research, and the Healthy Development Adelaide Award for achieving excellence in research contributing to healthy development. In 2023 she was the recipient of the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behavioural Therapy Distinguished Career Award. In 2024 she is a Global Ambassador for CBT for the World Confederation of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies.
Over 2024 to 2028 her research work is supported by a prestigious National Health and Medical Research Council Investigator Grant 2025665. The project, Revolutionising early intervention outcomes for youth with emerging eating disorders , seeks to tackle the gap between the rising prevalence of disordered eating and eating disorders in youth aged 14 to 25 years and timely, scalable and engaging interventions.
Click here to visit the website
Tracey Wade Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor
Flinders University (Flinders University Institute for Mental Health and Wellbeing)
Tel: +61 0403021291
Email: [email protected]
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New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King's College London and Birkbeck, University of London, has worked with members of the neurodivergent community to establish what they would like to see prioritized in future research on disordered eating.
"The overlap of disordered eating, autism and ADHD: future research priorities as identified by adults with lived experience" was published in The Lancet Psychiatry .
The researchers hope that a more collaborative approach to studies in this field has the potential to create a greater understanding of why autistic people and people with ADHD are more vulnerable to disordered eating and how best to aid those who need support.
A total of 71 neurodivergent (either autistic and/or with ADHD) adults who had experienced disordered eating responded to an online survey asking about their suggestions and preferences for future research in the field.
A list of recurrent themes from this survey was then taken through to an in-depth workshop with a different group of 14 neurodivergent adults who had also experienced disordered eating. Priorities were thought about from various different angles and in terms of their potential for impact. From this workshop, researchers collated a list of the top 10 research priorities, ranked by order of importance:
Researchers sorted the list into two overarching themes, each with two subgroups:
Participants identified that research relating to the improvement of services was the most urgent priority .
Clinical services for the treatment of eating disorders often aren't set up to accommodate the needs of neurodivergent individuals, and this can make treatment and support less effective.
Despite some progress being made in this area following the development of the PEACE Pathway, there are currently no clinical guidelines that have been agreed upon, and there has been little research conducted into the effectiveness of adapted treatments in autistic populations.
Thus, many of the top ranked priorities asked about how services could be improved and identifying and minimizing potential harms caused by unsuitable treatments.
Another key priority was on the availability of educational resources for neurodivergent people. While participants were clear that outcomes needed to improve, they also expressed that preventative measures and information that could help people prior to developing a clinical diagnosis could also be helpful and would empower neurodivergent people to understand their own eating behaviors.
A second priority that became apparent through the project was the participants' desire to understand the causal mechanisms linking neurodivergence with disordered eating.
Researchers broke this priority into two further subthemes:
Historically, it was assumed that autistic women with anorexia were motivated by weight and body shape, based on explanatory models from neurotypical people. However, this may not be true in neurodivergent people, such that many mechanisms we think (and therefore target during treatment) lead to eating disorders may not be relevant for neurodivergent people.
One potential factor that often comes up in neurodivergent people is that patterns of disordered eating may represent a response to the stress of living in a neurotypical world as a neurodivergent person.
Researchers suggested an avenue of research could be to test the link between stress and disordered eating in both neurodivergent and neurotypical populations to help inform the design of prevention and intervention strategies.
Participants asked several questions based around the idea that the cognitive profiles associated with autism and ADHD could increase someone's vulnerability to disordered eating.
Current evidence suggests that there are links between sensory sensitivities and restrictive eating, and between executive functioning and disordered eating, but whether these factors can account for the increased risk for eating disorders in autistic and ADHD populations isn't yet clear.
Dr. Virginia Carter Leno, the study's senior author said, "Experiencing disordered eating is related to a variety of negative health outcomes, and it's important that services are able to meet the needs of all service users requiring treatment.
"Eating disorder services need to recognize that the needs of neurodivergent service users may be different to neurotypical people, and more research is needed to better understand the drivers of disordered eating in neurodivergent people.
"Our study has worked with a range of people with lived experience to help identify what they feel needs to be the highest priorities for future research in this area. We hope this list will act as a resource to ensure that future research in the field is informed by the experience and priorities of those with lived experience."
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Do you or someone you know suffer from an eating disorder? According to the National Eating Disorders Association ( NEDA) , 28.8 million people in the U.S. will struggle with an eating disorder in their lifetime.
This page will provide you with information and resources to help you learn about the different diseases, and specific populations, and guide you or someone you know in the process of recovery and starting to live a fulfilling life! 100% recovery is possible!
*Content on this page was adapted from our former website, Voices4Hope, which was funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), ACL Grant #90RT5005 (formerly H133B090018) the Learning and Working During the Transition to Adulthood, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The Voices4Hope website was created by and for young adults living with a mental health condition to share the Center's work and other relevant information with their peers.
Eating disorders are serious but treatable mental and physical illnesses that can affect people of all genders, ages, races, religions, ethnicities, sexual orientations, body shapes, and weights. There is no single cause of an eating disorder. Rather, it is a complex combination of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors that converge and set off an individual’s predisposed genetic vulnerability. 1
There are 9 types of diagnosable eating disorders:
Visit the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) to learn more about each type of disorder including diagnostic criteria, warning signs, health consequences, and treatment considerations.
1 What are Eating Disorders? National Eating Disorders Association. 21 February 2024. https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/what-are-eating-disorders/
Eating disorders have the second highest mortality rate of any mental health condition (ANAD, http://www.anad.org/ ), but full recovery is possible and does happen!
Below are key resources to learn more about eating disorders and find support.
The study is led by Faraz Bishehsari, MD, PhD, (left) and Mahboobeh Mahdavinia, MD, PhD, (right).
Newswise — A groundbreaking research project to understand how diet and eating patterns can affect the body’s internal clock and influence aging is underway at UTHealth Houston, thanks to a $3.3 million grant from the National Institute on Aging.
The study is led by Faraz Bishehsari, MD, PhD, professor and vice chair of Clinical and Translational Research in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, and Mahboobeh Mahdavinia, MD, PhD, professor of allergy and immunology , and the John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine at McGovern Medical School.
The research holds the promise of uncovering new strategies for disease prevention and healthy aging. By revealing how eating habits and circadian rhythms influence gut and pancreatic health as people age, the research could significantly enhance the quality of life as we age, according to the study team.
Many age-related diseases are linked to low-grade systemic inflammation, sometimes known as “inflammaging,” a term used by some researchers to describe the chronic, low-level inflammation that occurs with aging and affects multiple organs. One of the main causes of this inflammation is the breakdown of the intestinal barrier, which is regulated by the interaction between the gut surface and its microbiome, a collection of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and their genes that naturally live on and inside the human body.
“As we age, changes in the microbiome and intestinal barrier can lead to chronic inflammation and damage to the intestine and other organs, like the pancreas,” said Bishehsari, who is establishing a multidisciplinary Gastroenterology Research Center in the Department of Internal Medicine, which he will direct. “Understanding how these changes occur and how to prevent them can help maintain gut health and prevent chronic diseases associated with the aging process.”
Bishehsari and Mahdavinia will study animals and humans in their research. They will look at how different mealtimes affect inflammation and aging in the guts and pancreas of mice, seeking to identify specific patterns and changes in gut bacteria that link meal timing to the aging process. Doing so will help identify possible biological pathways that accelerate aging.
The team will also study how disruptions to circadian rhythms affect gut bacteria and pancreas functions in humans. By examining human gut bacteria and circadian patterns, Bishehsari and Mahdavinia hope to identify targets for future therapeutic interventions that promote healthy aging.
“With the population of older individuals growing faster than any other age group, prioritizing healthy living in later years is more crucial than ever,” Mahdavinia said.
“Our research could uncover new targets for microbial or circadian interventions that could significantly influence the aging process,” Bishehsari said.
Type of article.
The ACT Government has completed the new Eating Disorders Residential Treatment Centre in Coombs, which will provide specialist care in a brand-new service for the region.
Minister for Mental Health Emma Davidson said that today was an important milestone for people in our community who face or care for someone with an eating disorder.
“The new centre in Coombs is the first government owned and operated facility of its kind in Australia. It provides 24/7 residential care in a place that feels like home so people can apply their skills once they are ready to leave the service,” Minister Davidson said.
“Eating disorders are serious illnesses that can have significant impacts on the physical, psychological, and social-emotional wellbeing of the individuals and families affected. The centre provides therapeutic services that include specialist, intensive nutritional, and psychological treatment.
“For the past few years, we have worked closely with a range of stakeholders on the design. This engagement was undertaken with clinicians, non-government organisations, people with lived experience of eating disorders and the wider Canberra community.
“Over the next few days Canberra Health Services will finalise the centre and from next week appointments will start running. Residential treatments will begin in the coming weeks.”
The establishment of the centre was supported by an Australian Government commitment of $13.5 million over three years.
The specialist residential centre is a new service for the ACT. The centre will complement other eating disorder services in the Canberra region, including the Eating Disorders Clinical Hub and the early intervention service.
Quotes attributable to Dr Jim Hungerford CEO of the Butterfly Foundation:
“It is excellent to see this much needed addition to the eating disorder supports available in the ACT.”
“Butterfly has welcomed the opportunity to share our learnings and insights from opening and running Wandi Nerida, Australia’s first residential recovery centre for eating disorders, located on the Sunshine Coast QLD, with ACT Health and other states as they develop their own public residential treatment facilities around Australia.
“We believe residential treatment, with 24/7 specialist eating disorder care in a home-like environment, is an essential option for successful recovery for many within the stepped system of care for eating disorders, and we’re excited to see more treatment options expanding across Australia for the more than1.1 million Australians directly impacted each year.”
Quotes attributable to David Quilty, ACT Director at Eating Disorder Families Australia:
“Eating Disorders Families Australia (EDFA) ACT Director, David Quilty, said the completion of the Residential Treatment Centre would be warmly welcomed by the families and carers of loved ones with eating disorders.
From day one, the Minister Emma Davidson and the Health Directorate have included representatives of eating disorder families and carers in all aspects of the planning and development of this facility, including the model of care.
EDFA looks forward to families and carers being active participants in the vital role of the Residential Treatment Facility and to continue providing our counselling, education and support services to the broader Canberra community.”
© 2024 - The National Tribune Australia
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The focus of mental health research in emerging fields should be driven by the priorities of people with relevant lived experience. Autism and ADHD are childhood-onset neurodevelopmental conditions that are associated with a range of health inequalities, including increased risk for eating disorders. The evidence base for how best to support neurodivergent individuals who experience disordered ...
The National Eating Disorder Quality Improvement Collaborative is a national collaborative of Adolescent Medicine sites that provide care to patients with eating disorders. ... We are currently conducting a research study that involves coding audio-recorded sessions of family-based treatment for anorexia nervosa to examine therapists' adherence ...
In the s hort-term, this project will publish work on the quantitative and qualitative research conducted, ... Her research focus is on eating disorders and how early life factors such as childhood appetite can be associated with eating disorders later on in life. She is particularly interested in selective eating and more specifically Avoidant ...
Research on eating disorders (EDs) treatment mainly focuses on Western countries, with little exploration of experiences in East Asia. To fill this gap, we reviewed 12 studies on the perspectives of individuals, families and clinicians regarding EDs treatments in East Asia. Our synthesis identified three main themes: Physical and Psychological ...
Given the severity of these disorders, our study is aimed to explore, in a sample of young Italian peoples, the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating disorders risk and symptoms. This is a retrospective study based on data from the medical records of adolescents admitted to the Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital of Rome (Italy) in the ...
Introduction: Although there have been qualitative meta-syntheses on experiences of eating disorders treatments, there is a paucity of syntheses specifically examining the perspectives and experiences of eating disorders treatments (ED) in East Asia (EA). Such synthesis could facilitate a better understanding of culture-specific perspectives and experiences.
The SONAR project aims to create a scholarly archive that collects, promotes and preserves the publications of authors affiliated with Swiss public research institutions. Shared genetic risk between eating disorder- and substance-use-related phenotypes: Evidence from genome-wide association studies.
Research on eating disorders (EDs) treatment mainly focuses on Western countries, with little exploration of experiences in East Asia. To fill this gap, we reviewed 12 studies on the perspectives of individuals, families and clinicians regarding EDs treatments in East Asia. Our synthesis identified three main themes:
Eating Disorders and Mimetic Desire René Girard Stanford University Among younger women, eating disorders are reaching epidemic proportions. The most widespread and spectacular at this moment is the most recently identified, the so-called bulimia nervosa, characterized by binge eating followed by "purging," sometimes through laxatives or ...
Flinders University's Blackbird Initiative exists to conduct high-level research and develop effective, evidence-based interventions to improve the lives of people affected by eating disorders. The prevalence of eating disorders in youth doubled in the five years before the onset of the COVID pandemic, affecting one in six females and one in 40 males.
The focus of mental health research in emerging fields should be driven by the priorities of people with relevant lived experience. Autism and ADHD are childhood-onset neurodevelopmental conditions that are associated with a range of health inequalities, including increased risk for eating disorders.
A second priority that became apparent through the project was the participants' desire to understand the causal mechanisms linking neurodivergence with disordered eating. Researchers broke this ...
There's some improvement in assessment and management of ED cases but the standard remains inadequate and ongoing evaluation is required to help steer service development and optimise patient care. An evaluation of the service and care provided to eating disordered patients referred to Tier 3 CAMHS within NHS Lanarkshire. Eating disorders are recognised as a relatively common disease with ...
Do you or someone you know suffer from an eating disorder? According to the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), 28.8 million people in the U.S. will struggle with an eating disorder in their lifetime. This page will provide you with information and resources to help you learn about the different diseases, and specific populations, and guide you or someone you know in the process of ...
An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that adversely affect a person's physical or mental health. [1] These behaviors include eating either too much or too little. Types of eating disorders include binge eating disorder, where the patient keeps eating large amounts in a short period of time typically while not being hungry; anorexia nervosa, where the ...
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