Posts Tagged ‘Eating Disorders’

Eating disorders are complex brain-based illnesses influenced by a variety of biological, psychological, and environmental factors. Body shaming—that is, shaming or humiliating an individual for the size or shape of their body—is one environmental factor that can contribute to the development of an eating disorder. It is a risk factor we can work together to prevent and combat. 

In this article, learn what body shaming entails, how it relates to eating disorders, and what you can do to combat it in your everyday life.

Anorexia nervosa is one of the most well-known and most discussed eating disorders. What many people might not realize is that there is a similar type of eating disorder called atypical anorexia nervosa, a diagnosis that falls under Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorders (OSFED). The two anorexia diagnoses differ in that those experiencing atypical anorexia meet many but not all of the diagnostic criteria for anorexia. For example, atypical anorexia may apply to someone who is restricting their food intake but is not “underweight.” 

Because OSFED is less well-known, the diagnoses within are sometimes misunderstood as less common illnesses. In reality, OSFED is actually the most prevalent eating disorder category in the DSM. 

In this blog, we will dive into the signs and symptoms, potential effects, and stigma surrounding atypical anorexia. 

Episode description:

In this episode of Peace Meal, Dr. Jaime Taylor and Nayiri Khatchadourian discuss their study on physicians’ knowledge about disordered eating in patients with diabetes. Through their study, they found that many physicians feel that they do not have the resources to help patients who show signs of disordered eating. They also describe warning signs of disordered eating to look for in patients with diabetes, as well as some serious health complications that may occur in patients with an eating disorder and diabetes. They end the conversation by emphasizing the importance of spreading awareness about the elevated eating disorder risk for those with diabetes, as well as highlighting the fact that weight does not determine health.

Dr. Jaime Taylor is the Director of Adolescent Medicine at Beaumont Children’s and is the Medical Director of the Hough Center for Adolescent Health. She is dedicated to the health and wellbeing of adolescents and is passionate about teaching on that subject as an Assistant Professor at Oakland University – William Beaumont School of Medicine. Nayiri Khatchadourian is currently a third-year medical student at Oakland University – William Beaumont School of Medicine. Her passion for advocating for mental health along with nutrition and wellness stemmed from her personal journey and struggles throughout her adolescent years. 

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June is Pride Month, a time to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and sexual and gender diversity. Members of the community and allies unite in pride and solidarity to recognize, honor, and uplift the voices of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer and/or questioning people.

As we honor the LGBTQIA+ community this month and beyond, we must also commit to better understanding and addressing the issues it faces. One such issue is eating disorders, which affect LGBTQIA+ people at disproportionately high rates.

In this article, we explore eating disorders in the LGBTQIA+ community and offer ways to support affected community members during Pride and throughout the year.

**Content warning: This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences in recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptoms. Please use your discretion when reading and speak with your support system as needed.   

Megan Bazzini is an anorexia survivor. She’s an American graduating from an Italian business school in June 2022. Her country-hopping uni years opened her heart and mind to choosing herself, recovery, and giving back. This is only the beginning of her advocacy for destigmatizing eating disorders. She is seeking literary representation for five novels featuring characters with eating disorders. You can follow her on Twitter (@BazziniBooks) or visit her portfolio.

Eating disorders are the unreliable narrators of our lives. They can convince us that some foods are evil and others are safe and that certain body sizes are a failure while others are a success.

The eating disorder instills in us a set of beliefs and rules to be followed. I was great at following those orders, and the list grew as the disease progressed. Meanwhile, my personality shrunk into a withdrawn husk of the person I was before sickness.

Ethics is a cornerstone of eating disorder care. It provides a framework for clinical decision-making and practice, differentiating “good” from “bad” and “right” from “wrong.” Though there are no hard and fast rules for clinicians approaching situations of ethical concern, every decision is guided by a moral code. In this blog, we will explore key ethical principles and dilemmas facing eating disorder treatment providers.

Key Ethical Principles

Eating disorders are complex mental and physical illnesses. Ethics in the treatment of eating disorders share this same complexity. From the moment a potential client makes the first call to our admissions team to the time that a client finishes treatment, ethical considerations are constantly at work. Each member of the multidisciplinary treatment team must adhere to the professional standards set by the organizations that license, certify, and support them, while the team collectively upholds the highest standard of client care.