Eating Disorders

"La explicación de los transtornos alimentarios: una lección de rigor frente a los trucos del ilusionismo"

by Francisco Vazquez Garcia

en Asclepio. Revista de Historia de la Medicina y de la Ciencia, vol. LXIII (2011), 2, pp. 591-596 (comentario bibliográfico de Moreno Pestaña, J.L.: Moral corporal, trastornos alimentarios y clase social, Madrid, CIS, 2010)

Comenta Nietzsche, en un aforismo incluido en Aurora, que la ciencia funciona al revés que la
prestidigitación.... more Comenta Nietzsche, en un aforismo incluido en Aurora, que la ciencia funciona al revés que la
prestidigitación. En ésta, el mago nos hace ver —haciendo desparecer al sempiterno conejo— una
causalidad simple donde en realidad opera la compleja causalidad del truco y del montaje. La ciencia
en cambio (al explicar algo de aspecto tan corriente como la caída y la puesta de sol, por ejemplo) nos
revela que tras la aparente simplicidad se oculta un mecanismo causal bastante complicado.
Este mismo empeño es el que gobierna la investigación de José Luis Moreno Pestaña. Se trata por una parte de un análisis sociológico de los trastornos alimentarios. En ningún caso se niega la condición patológica de éstos. Frente a versiones más o menos vulgares de Foucault o de la «teoría
del etiquetaje», filtradas políticamente por el feminismo, la queer theory o la antipsiquiatría, se
afirma decididamente que los trastornos alimentarios constituyen una enfermedad. No se está ante
construcciones sociodiscursivas promovidas por un aparato psiquiátrico puesto al servicio de las
fuerzas del patriarcado, el control social o la clase dominante.
Ahora bien, este reconocimiento de la condición patológica inducida por restricciones alimentarias intensas, implica al mismo tiempo recordar que no se trata sin más de patologías orgánicas o psíquicas, sino que hay dinámicas sociales que las propician.

"La explicación de los transtornos alimentarios: una lección de rigor frente a los trucos del ilusionismo"

by Francisco Vazquez Garcia

en Asclepio. Revista de Historia de la Medicina y de la Ciencia, vol. LXIII (2011), 2, pp. 591-596 (comentario bibliográfico de Moreno Pestaña, J.L.: Moral corporal, trastornos alimentarios y clase social, Madrid, CIS, 2010)

Comenta Nietzsche, en un aforismo incluido en Aurora, que la ciencia funciona al revés que la
prestidigitación.... more Comenta Nietzsche, en un aforismo incluido en Aurora, que la ciencia funciona al revés que la
prestidigitación. En ésta, el mago nos hace ver —haciendo desparecer al sempiterno conejo— una
causalidad simple donde en realidad opera la compleja causalidad del truco y del montaje. La ciencia
en cambio (al explicar algo de aspecto tan corriente como la caída y la puesta de sol, por ejemplo) nos
revela que tras la aparente simplicidad se oculta un mecanismo causal bastante complicado.
Este mismo empeño es el que gobierna la investigación de José Luis Moreno Pestaña. Se trata por una parte de un análisis sociológico de los trastornos alimentarios. En ningún caso se niega la condición patológica de éstos. Frente a versiones más o menos vulgares de Foucault o de la «teoría
del etiquetaje», filtradas políticamente por el feminismo, la queer theory o la antipsiquiatría, se
afirma decididamente que los trastornos alimentarios constituyen una enfermedad. No se está ante
construcciones sociodiscursivas promovidas por un aparato psiquiátrico puesto al servicio de las
fuerzas del patriarcado, el control social o la clase dominante.
Ahora bien, este reconocimiento de la condición patológica inducida por restricciones alimentarias intensas, implica al mismo tiempo recordar que no se trata sin más de patologías orgánicas o psíquicas, sino que hay dinámicas sociales que las propician.

Unconscious schemas, bulimic tendencies, and the influence of subliminal abandonment and unification cues on eating.

by Simon Boag

Mairet, K. S. & Boag, S. (2011). Unconscious schemas, bulimic tendencies, and the influence of subliminal abandonment and unification cues on eating. In S. Boag & N. Tiliopoulos (Eds.), Personality and Individual Differences: Theory, Assessment and Application (pp. 223-236). New York: Nova.

Recent research suggests that negative schemas (i.e., core beliefs) that are not directly related to eating, shape and... more Recent research suggests that negative schemas (i.e., core beliefs) that are not directly related to eating, shape and weight may play an important role in bulimia’s manifestation (Jones, Harris & Leung, 2005). Since these schemas may be prevented from awareness due to defensive processes, subliminal stimulation may be an effective means for treatment and serve as an adjunct to current therapies. To examine this, a sample of one hundred and twenty undergraduate women was divided into one of three visual subliminal stimuli groups: an abandonment related cue “lonely”, a unification cue “friendship” or a neutral cue “gallery”. After subliminal stimulus presentations participants were then left alone for 5 minutes with a bowl of biscuits to eat and the weight eaten was recorded. Contrary to what was predicted, women who received the subliminal abandonment cue did not eat significantly more than women in the control group. Furthermore, mixed support was found for Waller and Barter’s (2005) suggestion that women presented with a subliminal unification cue would eat significantly less than the women in the control group. While an overall difference was not found, women in the unification group who spoke English as a second language ate significantly less than those women in the control group.  The implications of the findings for both theory and treatment concerning bulimia are discussed, along with suggestions for future research.

Navigating the transition from pediatric to adult eating disorder programs: Perspectives of service providers

by Angela Tran

Objective:
This study aims to conduct qualitative research on the perspectives of service providers regarding the... more Objective:
This study aims to conduct qualitative research on the perspectives of service providers regarding the transition process from pediatric to adult specialized eating disorder tertiary care programs.

Method:
Two focus groups with a diverse group of clinicians in pediatric and adult eating disorder programs and five qualitative interviews with clinicians in the community were conducted.

Results:
Three themes were identified as challenges during the transition process: (1) illness related factors (ambivalence and denial); (2) the interruption of normative adolescent developmental processes by the illness; and, (3) the impact of decreased parental involvement in the adult compared to pediatric eating disorder programs.

Discussion:
These themes were compared with empirical evidence on other chronic mental or physical health concerns for the purpose of identifying ways to facilitate a more successful service transition for young adults with anorexia nervosa. Future research and clinical implications are delineated.

Tratamiento psicológico de un problema de alimentación en la infancia

by Pablo Romero Sanchiz

Pressure to be perfect: Influences on college students' body esteem

by Pavica Sheldon

Made for TV: Selling kids’ suffering and creating angels to save them. '.

by Michelle Stack

Stack, M. (2010). 'Made for TV: Selling kids’ suffering and creating angels to save them. '. Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education. 8.1 (2005): 7 - 22. In S. Steinberg & C. Lindsay (Eds.). Taboo: Essays on Culture and Education. (pp. 179-196). Peter Lang. New York, NY. REPRINT

I disturbi di personalità in pazienti con disturbo alimentare

by Barbara Basile

Benessere fisico e psichico e comportamenti alimentari patologici: uno studio cross.culturale

by Barbara Basile

CST5108: Intervention Design Project - Eating Disorders

by Rebecca Johnson

Intervention Design for Eating Disorders

Self-disclosure in eating disorders

by Barbara Basile

OBJECTIVE: Secrecy and concealment are typical behaviours in individuals with
eating problems. This study... more OBJECTIVE: Secrecy and concealment are typical behaviours in individuals with
eating problems. This study explored the relationship between eating-related
problems and self-disclosure. It examined whether women with greater eating
related problems were less willing to disclose. Different types of
self-disclosure were calculated, considering disclosure related to body
appearance and to restrained eating. The role of risk factors which concur to the
development and maintenance of eating symptomatology was also explored.
METHOD: The Eating Symptoms Inventory was used to investigate the existence of an
eventual eating symptomatology, self-disclosure was calculated through the
Self-Disclosure Index, while a new scale was validated to assess a
self-disclosure related to body image and eating attitudes. Other scales measured
the influence of different risk factors, as body dissatisfaction, social pressure
to be thin, and restrained eating.
RESULTS: A significant inverse relationship was found between general
self-disclosure and psychological aspects related to the practice of wrong weight
control behaviours and risk factors as dieting, body dissatisfaction, and social
pressure to be thin. The significant role of risk factors was confirmed in the
development and maintenance of eating disturbances. Interesting results were
found using the different self-disclosure indexes as mediators and moderators.
Relevant differences were found between Dutch and Italians concerning to their
eating attitudes and to the role of different risk factors.
CONCLUSION: Some limits are the impossibility to generalize these findings and
the use of a non clinical sample. Some new longitudinal studies should be done in
this direction to deepen the relationship between self-disclosure and eating
disorders.

Detection and management of eating disorders by general practitioners in regional Australia

by Candice Boyd

The aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of eating disorders in primary care in the Ballarat region and to... more The aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of eating disorders in primary care in the Ballarat region and to highlight the role of GPs in the detection and management of eating disorders in regional Australia. We used anonymous data previously collated by the Ballarat and District Division of General Practice on the prevalence of eating disorders and patterns of referral of eating disorder patients among GPs in their Division. Over half of GPs surveyed indicated that they treat patients with eating disorders within their practice rather than referring patients to other services. In referring on, GPs were more likely to refer to mental health professionals and dietitians. A notable finding was that these regional GPs were more likely to refer to metropolitan specialist services than local hospitals if their patients required an admission. GPs in regional Australia do significant work to detect and manage patients with clinical eating disorders in the absence of locally-based, specialist services. In this context, we recommend the establishment of linkage partnerships between GPs and mental health practitioners to facilitate early intervention for rural and regional eating disorder patients. Further research into the current treatment practices of regional GPs is also needed to ascertain their specific training needs with respect to this patient population.

A Personal Journey of Embodiment by Stacia Guzzo

by Feminism and Religion

originally published on the Feminism and Religion Project.

My struggle and fascination with the subject of embodiment began at a young age. Perhaps my first sense of the nuances... more My struggle and fascination with the subject of embodiment began at a young age. Perhaps my first sense of the nuances of being an embodied being began with the realization that my younger brother was considered “different” as a result of being born microcephalic (having an abnormally small head and brain) and therefore having lifelong developmental delay. I remember wondering: How is it that the body can work so perfectly sometimes and yet have so many complications other times? What had happened to make his development so starkly contrast my own? And why can’t it fix itself?

As a high school student, my struggle manifested in the forms of anorexia and bulimia. The anorexia came first, and began almost as if a switch had been thrown. I dieted severely and dropped 60 pounds in a little under 3 months, in the end making it a goal to lose a pound a day. My cheeks sunk in. I slept through lunch. I found little occasion to laugh. And still I could not see an ounce of beauty or satisfaction when I looked at my body. I poked at the jutting bones of my pelvis and wished my bones were smaller. I saw my body as a devious enemy. During my junior year, I became bulimic as a means of coping with increasing pressures by family and friends to eat.

Finally during my senior year in high school, everything came to a head. After beginning to consistently throw up blood, I secretly arranged a meeting with my pediatrician. She made me give her my word that I would put an end to my bulimia…and just as abruptly as I began, I stopped, true to my word.

In my freshman year of college I was sexually assaulted by a member of our social group. I told few people and silently cursed my femininity. College was a time when I neither loved nor hated my body; rather, I simply disconnected from it.

Continue reading: http://feminismandreligion.com/2012/01/10/a-personal-journey-of-embodiment-by-stacia-guzzo/#more-2112

Quality of life among caregivers of patients with eating disorders

by Carlota Las Hayas

Josune Martı´n • Angel Padierna • Urko Aguirre •
Jose´ Ma Quintana • Carlota Las Hayas •
Pedro Mun˜oz
Quality of Life Research: Volume 20, Issue 9 (2011), Page 1359-1369

Abstract
PURPOSE:

To analyse health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and its associated social and... more Abstract
PURPOSE:

To analyse health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and its associated social and clinical variables among a sample of caregivers of patients with eating disorders (ED).
METHODS:

It is a cross-sectional study involving 145 patients receiving outpatient treatment for an ED and 246 related caregivers. ED patients completed two self-administered questionnaires: the Health-Related Quality of Life in ED-short form and Eating Attitudes Test-26 questionnaires. Caregivers completed four self-administered questionnaires: the Short Form-12, Involvement Evaluation Questionnaire-EU version, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and Anorectic Behaviour Observation Scale. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, Chi-square and Fisher's exact test were applied to examine the inter-variable relationships.
RESULTS:

Caregivers had low scores on the mental health component of the SF-12 (P < 0.05). Low SF-12 scores were associated with a greater perceived care burden in the stress domains in interpersonal relationships (beta = -0.360, SE = 0.162, P = 0.029) and the need to urge their sick relatives to undertake healthful activities (beta = -0.340, SE = 0.155, P = 0.031).
CONCLUSIONS:

Low scores in the mental health domain of HRQoL among caregivers of patients with EDs indicate the need to pay particular attention to caregivers' emotional status, especially among mothers and partners.

PMID:
21373824
[PubMed - in process]

Quality of life and motivation to change in eating disorders, perception patient-psychiatrist

by Carlota Las Hayas

Muñoz, P., Quintana, J.M., Las Hayas, C., Padierna, A., Aguirre, U., Gonzalez-Torres, M.A.
Eatings Behaviors (IN PRESS)

Abstract
Purpose

To assess motivation to change (Mch) of patients with an eating disorder (ED) and its... more Abstract
Purpose

To assess motivation to change (Mch) of patients with an eating disorder (ED) and its relationship with quality-of-life (QoL) by comparing patient and psychiatrist perceptions.
Method

Patients (n = 358) with an ED completed the disease-specific Health-Related Quality of Life for Eating Disorders ( HeRQoLED) questionnaire, the Eatting Attitudes Test ( EAT-26) and the Short-Form Health Survey ( SF-12) at baseline; 273 completed them after 1 year of treatment. The relationship between health-related quality of life ( HRQoL) and the Mch stage was assessed using analysis of variance. Chi-square and Kappa statistical analysis assessed congruence in motivational change perception of the patients and psychiatrists.
Results

Higher patient-reported Mch was associated with higher HRQoL at the study beginning and end but not using the patient Mch as perceived by the psychiatrist. Initially, the patient and psychiatrist perceptions of Mch differed (kappa coefficient, -0.01); after 1 year they tended to converge (k = 0.34).
Conclusions

Higher Mch and higher QoL are positively associated. However, patient and psychiatrist perceptions of Mch and the relationship with QoL differ. After 1 year of treatment, these differences decreased.
Highlights:

► To assess the evolution of the motivation to change stage in eating disorder patients. ► There were differences between patient and psychiatrist perceptions. ► The quality of life improved after 1 year of treatment. ► A higher motivation to change was associated with a lower level of psychopathology.

Keywords: motivation to change; eating disorders; quality of life

The importance of epistemology: A response to Rosenstein's commentary

by Jamie Callahan

Callahan, J. L. (2010). The importance of epistemology: A response to Rosenstein’s commentary. Violence Against Women, 16(10), 1186-1193.

My response to a critical commentary of my 'Violence Against Women' article on the manifestations of power and control... more My response to a critical commentary of my 'Violence Against Women' article on the manifestations of power and control through eating disorders and sexual assault at the United States Air Force Academy.

Perfectionism and eating disturbances in Korean immigrants: Moderating effects of acculturation and ethnic identity

by Youngeun Ku

Quality of life among caregivers of patients with eating disorders

by Carlota Las Hayas

Revisión de la literatura sobre medidas psicométricas para personas con un trastorno de la alimentación

by Carlota Las Hayas

Health-Related Quality of Life for Eating Disorders questionnaire version-2 was responsive 1-year after initial assessment

by Carlota Las Hayas