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Posts

May 17, 2013

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4:13 PM | Transitioning from Adolescent to Adult Eating Disorder Treatment Programs: What Are The Challenges?
Navigating health service systems can seem daunting, to say the least. Making phone calls, getting doctor appointments and referrals, attending intake appointments, and preparing oneself for treatment can be both mentally and physically draining. When children and adolescents develop eating disorders, their parents become the main navigators in this scenario, making decisions and arrangements for their under-18-year-olds. But what happens when these adolescents reach the age of 18, and still […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

May 06, 2013

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7:42 PM | International Conference on Eating Disorders (ICED) 2013: Personal Reflections
The 2013 International Conference on Eating Disorders (ICED) ended on May 4th. I thought I’d reflect on the experience (short version: it was awesome and I’m so glad I went!). Please note, the following is in no way comprehensive, representative, or scientific. There were a lot of overlapping events at the conference, which meant that I could only attend a fraction of the events. I highlighted in yellow the workshops/panels/presentations I attended. There are more details about the […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

May 03, 2013

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12:27 PM | Pills for Bites: The Alarming Link between Drug Abuse and Eating Disorders
The association between drug abuse and eating disorders (EDs) is not new. Since the 1970s, doctors have reported higher incidents of self-medication and drug abuse in a subset of eating disorder patients. Drugs, in this context, cover everything from laxatives and diet pills, to alcohol and street drugs. The association between drug use and EDs is not shocking; however, the extent of the problem is likely overlooked. In a report detailing the most comprehensive review on the topic, the National […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

April 18, 2013

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2:18 PM | Nonpurging Bulimia Nervosa: Where Does It Fit?
When most people think of bulimia nervosa, they think of binge eating and self-induced vomiting. While that is not incorrect, it is not the full picture either. In the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV), there are two subtypes of bulimia nervosa: purging (BN-P) and nonpurging (BN-NP). The difference lies in the types of compensation methods: patients with BN-P engage in self-induced vomiting, or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas whereas patients with […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

April 10, 2013

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3:37 AM | Diabulimia: A Dangerous Duet
Type 1 diabetes (DMT1, or T1DM) is a lifelong disease often diagnosed in children or adolescents. Though causes of DMT1 are complex and not fully understood, it results from the body’s immune system destroying its own insulin-producing cells. This drastically lowers insulin levels and leads to high blood sugar (insulin is crucial for regulating blood sugar). If not managed properly, DMt1 can wreck havoc on the nerves, heart, and retina. The onset of DMT1 often results in dramatic weight […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

April 04, 2013

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8:47 PM | Binge Eating: When Should We Call It An “Addiction”?
Hello Science of Eating Disorders readers! This is a guest post by Liz. Liz is a PhD Candidate in Psychology at the University of Toronto. You can read more about her research, interests, and eating disorder history on her “About” page. And the usual “disclaimer”: Please keep in mind that I (Tetyana) give as much freedom as possible to guest writers and contributors to write about their own interests and viewpoints. That means that we don’t all necessary agree; there […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

March 30, 2013

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1:38 PM | Eating Disorders in the Elderly
The first published case of a late-onset eating disorder (at the age of 40) was in 1930 by John M. Berkman. In 1936, John A. Ryle published a case study of an eating disorder in a 59-year-old woman. Just how common are eating disorders in late middle-age or elderly individuals? There aren’t a lot of studies on this topic, but the the above figures illustrate that there’s a significant minority of elderly individuals who struggle with eating disorders or disordered eating. What […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

March 21, 2013

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8:36 PM | Your Body’s Response to Chewing and Spitting: The Role of Insulin
In my previous post, I looked at two hormones released during the cephalic phase (gastric secretion that occurs before food is eaten), ghrelin and obestatin, and how they may contribute to runaway eating behavior. Today I’m going to be looking at insulin release during chew and spit (CHSP), a fairly common symptom in eating disorders where the food is tasted, chewed and spit out. Insulin is a small peptide hormone that acts as a key regulator of metabolism; deregulation of […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

March 18, 2013

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7:30 PM | Demystifying the Genetics of Eating Disorders – Part II
In my last post I talked about some methods that scientists use to study the genetics of eating disorders. I focused on a subfield of genetics called behavioural genetics (which you can think of as a field that attempts to understand, in part, the interplay of genetics and environment in behaviour). In this post I’ll shift gears and focus on molecular genetics. I’ll be working of the same review paper by Drs. Zerwas and Bulik (2011). Molecular geneticists study the structure […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

March 16, 2013

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1:50 AM | Demystifying the Genetics of Eating Disorders – Part I
Today I thought I’d take the time to do an overview of what researchers know about the genetics of eating disorders and try to clear up some common misconceptions. The bulk of the content in this blog post comes from a very nice review paper published in 2011 by Drs. Stephanie Zerwas and Cynthia Bulik on the genetics and epigenetics of eating disorders. In an effort to keep blog posts short, this will be a multi-part mini-series. When it comes to the genetics of eating disorders, there […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

March 06, 2013

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5:20 PM | Your Body’s Response to Chewing & Spitting: The Role of Ghrelin and Obestatin
Shelly’s follow-up post on chewing and spitting, an often overlooked symptom in eating disorders. In her first post, Shelly discussed the prevalence of chewing and spitting among eating disorder patients. In this post, Shelly discusses some of the physiological effects of chewing and spitting. Enjoy! – Tetyana Your body responds to food long before it reaches your stomach. The taste, smell, even the mere sight of food all act to trigger a physiological response, “priming” the […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

March 04, 2013

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4:24 AM | Is Living in an Urban City a Risk Factor for Bulimia Nervosa?
The link between urban living and mental disorders such as schizophrenia and depression has been known for quite some time (Sundquist et al., 2004). In one study, Sundquist et al found that individuals living in a densely populated area had a 68-77% higher risk of developing psychosis and 12-22% higher risk of developing depression. The question then arises, do eating disorders follow a similar pattern? And if yes, what are some possible explanations? Certainly we know that both genetic and […]

VAN SON, G., VAN HOEKEN, D., BARTELDS, A., VAN FURTH, E. & HOEK, H. (2006). Urbanisation and the incidence of eating disorders, The British Journal of Psychiatry, 189 (6) 562-563. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
Citation
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4:24 AM | Living in a Large City: A Risk Factor for Bulimia Nervosa?
The link between urban living and mental disorders such as schizophrenia and depression has been known for quite some time (Sundquist et al., 2004). In one study, Sundquist et al found that individuals living in a densely populated area had a 68-77% higher risk of developing psychosis and 12-22% higher risk of developing depression. The question then arises, do eating disorders follow a similar pattern? And if yes, what are some possible explanations? Certainly we know that both genetic and […]

VAN SON, G., VAN HOEKEN, D., BARTELDS, A., VAN FURTH, E. & HOEK, H. (2006). Urbanisation and the incidence of eating disorders, The British Journal of Psychiatry, 189 (6) 562-563. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
Citation
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3:24 AM | Living in a Large City: A Risk Factor for Bulimia Nervosa?
The link between urban living and mental disorders such as schizophrenia and depression has been known for quite some time (Sundquist et al., 2004). In one study, Sundquist et al found that individuals living in a densely populated area had a 68-77% higher risk of developing psychosis and 12-22% higher risk of developing depression. The question then arises, do eating disorders follow a similar pattern? And if yes, what are some possible explanations? Certainly we know that both genetic and […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

February 28, 2013

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9:26 PM | Framing Eating Disorders As “Brain Diseases” Might Lead to More Stigma
Many–myself included–assume that emphasizing the biological basis of mental disorders will reduce mental health stigma. The idea is that it will place less blame and personal responsibility on the affected individual. Still, when it comes to raising awareness and reducing stigma, we need to make sure that our assumptions hold up to the evidence, otherwise we run the risk of playing a game of broken telephone. Given that this is Eating Disorder Awareness Week in the United States, […]

Angermeyer, M., Mnich, E., Daubmann, A., Herich, L., Wegscheider, K., Kofahl, C. & Knesebeck, O. (2013). Biogenetic explanations and public acceptance of people with eating disorders, Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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February 25, 2013

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10:30 PM | Rigid Food Rules in Eating Disorders: Is Perfectionism to Blame?
I remember cutting baby carrots into 6 pieces. Rushing home to eat because I wasn’t “allowed” to eat after 7 pm. Eating the exact portion size–no more, no less. (Oh the rules. I don’t miss them.) Rigid food rules are very common among eating disorder sufferers. These rules can be about anything: the foods you are allowed to eat, how you are allowed to eat them, the time you are allowed to eat them, and so on. But where do they come from? Why do some […]

Brown, A., Parman, K., Rudat, D. & Craighead, L. (2012). Disordered eating, perfectionism, and food rules, Eating Behaviors, 13 (4) 347-353. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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February 23, 2013

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2:28 AM | Chewing and Spitting: A Neglected Symptom in Eating Disorders?
Dear Science of Eating Disorders readers, please welcome Shelly, our newest contributor! Shelly is a PhD Candidate in Neuroscience at the University of British Columbia. You can find out more about Shelly on the ‘About Shelly‘ page. Check out her neuro(science) blog, Neurorexia and follow her on Twitter. Email shelly@scienceofeds.org to get in touch.  Just a note, do keep in mind that I (Tetyana) try to give as much freedom as possible to guest writers and contributors to write […]

Guarda, A., Coughlin, J., Cummings, M., Marinilli, A., Haug, N., Boucher, M. & Heinberg, L. (2004). Chewing and spitting in eating disorders and its relationship to binge eating, Eating Behaviors, 5 (3) 231-239. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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February 21, 2013

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2:16 AM | Lifetime Prevalence of Eating Disorders Among Eating Disorder Professionals
How many professionals that treat eating disorders have a personal history of struggling with an eating disorder? It is a crucial question to ask (and answer) because there are important implications for patient treatment and for the health of the afflicted professionals. It is true that many (or most?) individuals who go into mental health do so because of personal experiences–whether due to their own personal history or the experiences of a loved one–so it is useful to ask, just […]

BARBARICH, N. (2002). Lifetime Prevalence of Eating Disorders Among Professionals in the Field, Eating Disorders, 10 (4) 305-312. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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February 18, 2013

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4:45 AM | Shared Genetics Between Disordered Eating and Periods (Menses)
Puberty at an early age increases the risk for disordered eating behaviours such as bingeing and purging (Jacobi et al., 2004; Kaltiala-Heino et al., 2001). What’s more, the hormone estradiol moderates the risk of disordered eating behaviours. More precisely, in a group of twins with low estradiol levels, differences in disordered eating are likely due to environmental factors (such as family, school, friends), but in a group of twins with high estradiol levels, the differences in […]

Baker JH, Thornton LM, Bulik CM, Kendler KS & Lichtenstein P (2012). Shared genetic effects between age at menarche and disordered eating., The Journal of Adolescent Health, 51 (5) 491-6. PMID:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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February 15, 2013

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4:58 AM | Personality Traits after Recovery from Eating Disorders: Do Anorexia and Bulimia Patients Differ?
When we think about eating disorders, we tend to think about eating disorder subtypes: anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge eating disorder. A lot of previous work has shown that individuals with AN and BN tend to be anxious, depressed, perfectionistic, and harm-avoidant. Patients with AN also tend to score low on novelty-seeking, impulsivity, and self-directedness, whereas patients with BN score high on novelty-seeking and impulsivity. More recently, however, some researchers […]

Wagner, A., Barbarich-Marsteller, N., Frank, G., Bailer, U., Wonderlich, S., Crosby, R., Henry, S., Vogel, V., Plotnicov, K., McConaha, C. & Kaye, W. (2006). Personality traits after recovery from eating disorders: Do subtypes differ?, International Journal of Eating Disorders, 39 (4) 276-284. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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February 03, 2013

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4:11 AM | Over-Exercise is Associated With Suicidality in Individuals with Disordered Eating
Last week, I blogged about a study that examined personality traits and clinical variables associated with excessive exercise in eating disorder patients. In that study, 2 out of 5 participants engaged in excessive exercise. Today, I’m going to discuss a study that suggests over-exercise in disordered eating patients is associated with suicide behaviour. Suicide rates in eating disorder patients are high. One meta-analysis suggested that out of all eating disorder related deaths, 1 in 5 […]

Smith, A., Fink, E., Anestis, M., Ribeiro, J., Gordon, K., Davis, H., Keel, P., Bardone-Cone, A., Peterson, C., Klein, M. & Crow, S. (2012). Exercise caution: Over-exercise is associated with suicidality among individuals with disordered eating, Psychiatry Research, DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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Editor's Pick

January 27, 2013

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4:35 AM | Excessive Exercise in Eating Disorders
Excessive exercise (EE) is common among eating disorder patients. Indeed, in the study I’ll write about today, 39% of patients engaged in EE. Previous studies have tried to find psychopathological and personality correlates of EE but the results have been inconsistent. Some studies have suggested that impulsivity and addictiveness are highly correlated with EE whereas others found that anxious and depressive traits were more closely associated. In this multi-site study, […]

Shroff, H., Reba, L., Thornton, L., Tozzi, F., Klump, K., Berrettini, W., Brandt, H., Crawford, S., Crow, S., Fichter, M. & Goldman, D. (2006). Features associated with excessive exercise in women with eating disorders, International Journal of Eating Disorders, 39 (6) 454-461. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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January 26, 2013

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4:58 AM | Characteristics of Women with Midlife-Onset Eating Disorders
Since the late 1990′s, Remuda Ranch Program for Eating Disorders has experienced a 400% increase in patients 40 years of age and older, according to the authors of this paper. However, we don’t really know what the similarities and differences are between women who develop eating disorders in adolescence and those who develop their eating disorders in midlife (40-65 years of age). In this paper, Edward Cumella and Zina Kally present a summary of 50 women who first developed eating […]

Cumella, E. & Kally, Z. (2008). Profile of 50 Women with Midlife-Onset Eating Disorders, Eating Disorders, 16 (3) 193-203. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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January 24, 2013

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3:17 AM | Pregnancy, Motherhood, and Eating Disorders: Women’s Experiences
There is a common misconception that eating disorders somehow disappear during pregnancy; that becoming a mother stops all those silly worries about being slim and attractive. This is not necessarily the case, but unfortunately, there is a lot of stigma associated with talking about disordered eating behaviours during pregnancy. Openly admitting to it is an invitation, it seems, to being called selfish and vain. The implication is that eating disorders are something only young girls struggle […]

Tierney, S., Fox, J., Butterfield, C., Stringer, E. & Furber, C. (2011). Treading the tightrope between motherhood and an eating disorder: A qualitative study, International Journal of Nursing Studies, 48 (10) 1223-1233. DOI:

Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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January 19, 2013

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4:58 AM | What’s Wrong with How We Talk About Eating Disorders in the Media and in ED Communities – Part 2
This is a follow-up to my last post on what I think can be improved in how we talk about eating disorders in the media and in ED communities. If you haven’t read my last post, I strongly recommend doing so before reading this one. My focus in this post will be on what individuals with a history of EDs and ED organizations can do to improve how eating disorders are perceived by the general public. (Sidenote on my last post: I feel I didn’t emphasize enough that I used Emma […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry

January 17, 2013

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3:40 PM | What’s Wrong with How We Talk About Eating Disorders in the Media and in ED Communities – Part 1
I’m going to do something different today. I’m going to talk about some of the problems I see in how eating disorders are discussed by some media organizations, ED awareness groups, and ED advocates. This isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list of everything that’s wrong (and there will be a follow-up). It is my personal opinion and I strongly encourage readers to leave comments if you disagree with me or feel that I’m missing something important. I saw this quote on […]
Science of Eating Disorders
Neuroscience | Psychiatry
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