Bulimia and binge eating, food addiction, body image: articles, research
Researcher looks into little known ‘purging disorder’ ScienceDaily (Apr 29, 2022) – Though purging is often a condition associated with bulimia nervosa, new research at Ohio University suggests that a different kind of eating disorder could also be responsible. … more
Bulimia Tied to Increased CVD, Early Death Risk Medscape (Oct 28, 2019) by Pauline Anderson – Women with bulimia serious enough to require hospitalization have about a fourfold increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and premature death, new research shows. Clinicians should be aware that bulimia is not something that goes away once treated, study investigator Nathalie Auger, MD, physician researcher at University of Montreal Hospital Research Center, Quebec, Canada, told Medscape Medical News. “This is a long-standing problem that impacts women throughout their lives,” she said. … more
How Self-Induced Vomiting Impacts Your Body Gurze-Salucor Eating Disorders Research Catalogue (Jan 4, 2019) by Pamela Keel, PhD — In a 1980 article titled “Self-Induced Vomiting,” Dr. Christopher Fairburn detailed the emotional and physical consequences of self-induced vomiting in four case studies … Today, we understand that vomiting occurs in several eating disorders, including the binge-purge subtype of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and purging disorder. Further, recurrent self-induced vomiting to control weight is reported by approximately 1 in 50 adolescent girls and 1 in 500 adolescent boys. This makes self-induced vomiting a prevalent problem and underscores the importance of identifying how it impacts your body … more
Anorexia And Bulimia Are Black Women’s Diseases, Too Huffington Post (Feb 26, 2018) by Erica Hawkins … White women are certainly the most visible victims of eating disorders …The National Eating Disorders Association reports that accounts of eating disorders among ethnic minorities are growing, but statistics on the prevalence of eating disorders among women of color still aren’t available. The NEDA believes this is most likely due to the longstanding but erroneous idea that eating disorders only affect white women ― a misperception that may lead to research and reporting biases, and result in relatively little research involving participants from racial and ethnic minority groups. … more
Exercise Bulimia, the New Eating Disorder Verywell.com (Dec 16, 2017) by Paige Waehner – Though many of us worry about getting enough exercise, there is such a thing as too much exercise. Regular exercise is a good thing, but more is not always better and in some cases, compulsive exercise can be just as dangerous as eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia. Compulsive exercise is just another tool some people use to purge their body of calories, much like a bulimic who binges and purges. In fact, there’s even a name for it: Exercise Bulimia….more
Bulimia: 8 Ways it Will Make You Look Gross, Not Sexy ppcorn.com (Apr 25, 2016) by Kristan Manning – Bulimia has only become more common in the modern day. However, what people who take part in this disorder don’t realize is that starving yourself doesn’t only make you lose weight; it makes you lose weight in all of the wrong ways. People who decide to be bulimic are subject to malnutrition and dysmorphia. In the long run, it really just makes you look gross- not sexy. Here are some ways it will do so. … more
Bulimia and the brain: responses to body image and food Medical News Today (Nov 18, 2013) – Brains of women with bulimia respond differently to women without bulimia when shown images of slim women. Both groups responded similarly to pictures of food, according to a study published in the open access journal BMC Psychiatry. The work suggests that treatments for bulimia should have a strong focus on self image rather than solely or primarily on issues with food. Link
New bulimia treatment developed ScienceDaily (Nov. 16, 2012) — An eating disorders research team led by Stephen Wonderlich, a Director of Clinical Research at the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute (NRI), has developed a successful bulimia nervosa therapy that can provide patients an alternative for treating this debilitating disorder. Wonderlich, also a University of North Dakota Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience, says the new treatment is psychological in nature and focuses on eating- and emotion- related behavior through the arduous process of dealing with, and hopefully eliminating, their bulimic symptoms. Link
Beyond anorexia, bulimia: Lesser known eating disorders Health on Today (Apr. 17, 2012) by Jenny Deam – For decades, the eating disorder lexicon had two main entries: anorexia and bulimia. But modern research reveals that these fall woefully short of encompassing the many facets of disordered eating… The new disorder: binge eating. What it is: compulsive overeating, often to deal with negative emotions or stress. Binge eaters consume large amounts of food very quickly, until they’re uncomfortably full. Link
The majority of women with bulimia reach highest-ever weight after developing the disorder MNT: Medical News Today (Mar 1, 2012) – Researchers at Drexel University have found that a majority of women with bulimia nervosa reach their highest-ever body weight after developing their eating disorder, despite the fact that the development of the illness is characterized by significant weight loss. Their new study, published online last month in the International Journal of Eating Disorders, adds to a body of recent work that casts new light on the importance of weight history in understanding and treating bulimia. Link
How I got an eating disorder at 62 Healthzone.ca (Aug. 4, 2011) by Sandy Naiman – Words like “anorexia” and “bulimia” bring to mind unwell teenagers, not middle-aged women. But eating disorders – the most fatal mental illnesses known – can take hold at any age. Our author shares her own struggle and talks to the experts about the poorly-understood problem. Link
An older generation falls prey to eating disorders New York Times: Well (Mar. 29, 2011) by Tara Parker-Pope – More than 10 million Americans suffer from anorexia, bulimia and other eating disorders. And while people tend to think such problems are limited to adolescence and young adulthood, Judith Shaw knows otherwise… Experts say that while eating disorders are first diagnosed mainly in young people, more and more women are showing up at their clinics in midlife or even older. Some had eating disorders early in life and have relapsed, but a significant minority first develop symptoms in middle age. (Women with such disorders outnumber men by 10 to 1.) Link
Women with eating disorders draw a different picture of themselves than women without, study suggests ScienceDaily (Feb. 15, 2011) — Women suffering from anorexia or bulimia draw themselves with prominently different characteristics than women who do not have eating disorders and who are considered of normal weight. This has been revealed in a new joint study from the University of Haifa, Soroka University Medical Center and Achva Academic College, Israel, published in The Arts in Psychotherapy. Link
Unnamed eating disorders may go untreated: Anorexia and bulimia the most familiar, but not the most common msnbc.com (May 23, 2010) by Rachael Rettner – Anorexia and bulimia are probably the most familiar types of eating disorders, but they are not the most common. Some 50 to 60 percent of patients don’t quite make the cut to be diagnosed with full-blown anorexia or bulimia, and are instead classified as having an eating disorder “not otherwise specified” (EDNOS). Link
Eating Disorders Awareness Week: The need for increased education, effective treatment and prevention Huffingtonpost.com (Feb. 23, 2010) by Susan Blumenthal & Beth Hoffman — This week (February 21st–27th) is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, seven days designated by the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) to raise awareness about the prevalence, impact and public health significance of these disabling and potentially life-threatening illnesses. When most people think of someone with an eating disorder, the first image that comes to mind is often that of a young, emaciated woman. But this image does not accurately reflect the clinical picture of eating disorders in America and worldwide. Eating disorders are mental illnesses characterized by abnormal eating behavior and obsessive thoughts about food and weight. Someone with an eating disorder can be normal weight, underweight, or overweight. Eating disorders are pervasive, affecting up to 24 million Americans and 70 million individuals worldwide. Once thought of as diseases of upper-middle class adolescents, recent research has shown that eating disorders cross racial, religious, ethnic, and socio-economic lines and that 10-15% of those suffering with eating disorders are men. Anorexia is now the 3rd most common chronic illness among adolescent women, and the percentage of college students dieting, purging, or taking laxatives to lose weight has increased in the past decade from about 28 to 38%. Link
High-fat, high-sugar foods alter brain receptors ScienceDaily (Aug. 6, 2009) — Over consumption of fatty, sugary foods leads to changes in brain receptors, according to new animal research at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The new research results are being presented at the 2009 annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB). The results have implications for understanding bulimia and other binge eating disorders. Link
When eating disorders strike in midlife New York Times: Health (July 13, 2009) by Randi Hutter Epstein — No one has precise statistics on who is affected by eating disorders like anorexia nervosa and bulimia, often marked by severe weight loss, or binge eating, which can lead to obesity. But experts say that in the past 10 years they are treating an increasing number of women over 30 who are starving themselves, abusing laxatives, exercising to dangerous extremes and engaging in all of the self-destructive activities that had, for so long, been considered teenage behaviors. Link
Survey puts new focus on binge eating as a diagnosis New York Times (Feb 13, 2009) by Nicholas Bakalar — Binge eating is not yet officially classified as a psychiatric disorder. But it may be more common than the two eating disorders now recognized, anorexia nervosa and bulimia. The first nationally representative study of eating disorders in the United States, a nationwide survey of more than 2,900 men and women, was published by Harvard researchers in the Feb. 1 issue of the journal Biological Psychiatry. It found prevalence in the general population of 0.6 percent for anorexia, 1 percent for bulimia and 2.8 percent for binge-eating disorder. Link
Brain circuit abnormalities may underlie bulimia nervosa in women ScienceDaily (Jan. 7, 2009) — Women with bulimia nervosa appear to respond more impulsively during psychological testing than those without eating disorders, and brain scans show differences in areas responsible for regulating behavior, according to a new report. Link
Binge eating more common than other eating disorders, survey finds ScienceDaily (Feb. 4, 2007) — The first national survey of individuals with eating disorders shows that binge eating disorder is more prevalent than either anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. The study, conducted by researchers at Harvard-affiliated McLean Hospital, also calls binge eating disorder a “major public health burden” because of its direct link to severe obesity and other serious health effects. Link
Association of anger with bulimic and other impulsive behaviors among non-clinical women and men European Eating Disorders Review 12 (2004) 392–397 – The literature on links between anger and bulimic behaviors has focused largely on clinical populations of female patients. This study of a non-clinical group explores whether the relationship between anger and bulimia is specific to binge-eating (rather than other eating or impulsive behaviors) and whether the links are gender-specific. Link
Bulimics’ responses to food cravings: is binge-eating a product of hunger or emotional state? Behavior Research and Therapy 39 (2001) 877–886 – This study examined the roles of hunger, food craving and mood in the binge-eating episodes of bulimic patients, and identified the critical factors involved in the processes surrounding binge-eating episodes that follow cravings. Link
Genetic clues to eating disorders BBC online: Health (January 21, 1999) — Doctors studying the causes of the eating disorders anorexia and bulimia believe it has less to do with media images of slim-figured models and more to do with biological and genetic factors. Link
Brain chemicals may cause bulimia BBC online: Health (October 14, 1998) — The eating disorder bulimia nervosa may be caused, at least in part, by chemical changes to the brain, researchers have discovered. Scientists have found that chemical changes that take place in the brains of sufferers persist even after recovery. Link
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.