Could Parenting Styles Cause Eating Disorders?
Research has shown that children and youth who diet are much more likely to develop eating disorders. In fact, the earlier that dieting begins, the more likely a significant eating disorder can occur. Body positivity begins at home; parenting styles can help to develop body positivity naturally. It is normal and expected that […]
ARFID – Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
Avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) is avoidance of food/nutrition. Still, the avoidance is based on fear of choking or vomiting triggered by smells and textures, not anxiety about weight gain. It results in a loss of weight or a failure to gain weight at the rate expected along the developmental trajectory for a […]
Anorexia in Larger Bodies? Busting Misdiagnosis and Stigma
When you think of anorexia, what is the mental picture you have? Images of an emaciated individual come to mind: a whisp of a young woman, clothes hanging off a skeletal frame. In reality, serious eating disorders can occur in individuals of all body sizes, any gender, and most ethnic groups. Only 7% of […]
Body Acceptance & Diet Culture – A Parent’s Guide
In October, we celebrate Body Acceptance Week (National Eating Disorders Association) and at Sanford Behavioral Health we support NEDA. In fact, eating disorder programming has shaped the way the entire organization looks at body acceptance and meals. We know that body dissatisfaction is a risk factor in the development of an eating disorder. But […]
Bulimia Nervosa – Breaking the Binge Purge Cycle
Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by patterns of consuming a large amount of food in a short amount of time (bingeing) and eliminating calories consumed (purging). The most common compensatory behavior is vomiting. Other compensatory behaviors are using laxatives or diuretics, excessive exercise; extreme fasting; and manipulating insulin or other medications. Someone […]
Binge Eating Disorder and Diet Culture
Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is characterized by the consumption of a large amount of food in a discrete period of time. It is the most common eating disorder in the United States, and it affects people of all racial and ethnic groups. About 1.25% of adult women and 0.42% of adult men have binge […]
Anorexia Nervosa – When Is It Time for Residential Treatment?
Anorexia Nervosa Is the refusal of food/nutrition, along with an obsessional fear of gaining weight or “becoming fat”. This results in a disturbance in the way body image is seen and experienced. In other words, the individual with anorexia not only believes their body is larger than it is, but they also experience it […]
The Rise of Orthorexia – Healthy Eating on Steroids
Orthorexia is a variation of anorexia nervosa which presents as an obsessional desire to eat only “healthy” or “clean” foods and a preoccupation with exercise. Although the initial presentation may be different from traditional anorexia, the core issue – an unhealthy fear of weight gain – is the same. “Adolescents are a nutritionally […]
Eating & Substance Use Disorders – Why They Coexist
Did you know that 50% of individuals who struggle with eating disorders also misuse alcohol or other drugs? This is a rate 5 times higher than the general population. Similarly, 35% of individuals who misused or were dependent on alcohol or drugs have also had eating disorders – a rate 11 times higher than […]
