Thoughts on the Freshman 15, Courtesy of Newsweek...

This fall, Newsweek Magazine wrote an article entitled "Rethinking The Freshman Fifteen." I was immediately drawn to this article for obvious reasons, as I work with eating disorders, but I also remember the hysteria surrounding the ominous freshman fifteen that I was bombarded with when going off to college. I remember hearing about these alleged 15 pounds that my fellow freshman and I needed to watch out for- relatives, people in my dorm, my RA, friends, professors, strangers who found out I was a freshman, etc... it all felt just a little bit much. What I liked about this article is that it highlights an at risk group- college freshman, and really, college students in general- but it also highlights a cultural notion- the freshman fifteen, which can trigger disordered eating in many college students who begin to fixate on not wanting to gain these 15 pounds.

While we know that each person responds differently to environmental stimuli, we also know that the trend in college dining halls to display caloric and nutritional information for all food being served has been difficult for some people. For this reason, Harvard University pulled the caloric and nutritional information from their dining halls last year, instead opting to feature it online for those who were interested. For some who may be recovering or trying to recover from an eating disorder, this information is triggering and may prove to be detrimental. For others who struggle with disordered eating, or for those who have no history of eating issues, the presence of such information can bring about an unhealthy awareness. The argument that a school like Yale makes (Yale University refuses to remove this information in their dining halls) is that obesity in our country is rising, and this is a helpful way to encourage healthy eating and weight management.

What stands out in my mind (click HERE to read this article) is not so much the debate over whether or not to display caloric and nutritional information about the food being served in dining halls, but how we help to engage college students in healthy ways of living. The number of EDNOS diagnoses (Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified- a diagnostic term which includes disordered eating behaviors that do not meet the exact criteria for anorexia and/or bulimia) has doubled, and according to a statistic in this article from the American College Health Association, 38 percent of college students are using eating disordered behaviors to manage weight. The need for education, therapy and healthy approaches to our bodies and food is something that we ALL need, but this article just reminds me that college students are at risk. Prevention efforts aimed at college students, as well as treatment, is essential.

Preventing Anxiety in Children: A Familial Approach

I recently came across an article detailing a study that looked at anxiety prevention which I enjoyed (I work with children and teens that deal with anxiety as well as their families) and thus, wanted to pass on this article of interest. A pilot study conducted at Johns Hopkins Children's Center recently looked at anxiety in children who have parents that are anxious. The researchers employed a family approach using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and they found that as few as eight weekly sessions of family CBT therapy were helpful in reducing anxiety. This study used a very small sample size, but the results are significant as far as prevention efforts go. Golda Ginsburg, a child psychologist at Johns Hopkins and senior researcher on this team, reports that children who have parents with an anxiety disorder are seven times more likely to develop anxiety. As a result, in conjunction with what we know about children and anxiety (one in five children in the US develop anxiety disorders), this is helpful information for parents, as well as health care professionals. For more information on this study and to read this article, click HERE.

Orthorexia

When most people hear about eating disorders, they typically think of anorexia, bulimia, and maybe even binge eating disorder. Binge eating disorder (BED) is receiving more attention lately than it has in the past--and as a side note, Cynthia Bulik, the Director of the UNC Eating Disorders Program, recently wrote a great book on binge eating called Crave that is worth checking out.

Anyways, what you may not know is that the way in which these eating disorders present themselves can differ from person to person. We are always learning more about eating disorders as research is being done, and recently, there have been an increasing number of discussions about a variation of anorexia called orthorexia. To be clear, orthorexia is not defined as its own type of eating disorder-- it is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Orthorexia is different from anorexia in its motivation, in that one who is orthorexic is not necessarily trying to lose weight or be thin; rather, one is trying to eat as healthfully as possible. As with all eating disorders, the underlying causes go much deeper than a desire to be thin or to be healthy.

Orthorexia, as defined by the National Association of Eating Disorders (NEDA), is a "fixation on righteous eating." Dr. Steven Bratman is responsible for coining this term, and he describes it as a "pathological fixation on eating proper food." Basically, the idea is that one becomes so obsessed with consuming healthy food, and refuses to eat anything but food that is of a high purity and quality. This may even apply to how a food is packaged. There is often an obsessive compulsive quality that accompanies this type of eating behavior. Most residential facilities that treat eating disorders treat orthorexia and are educated about this form of anorexia. For more information on orthorexia, follow THIS LINK.

Also, visit THIS LINK to read NEDA's information about orthorexia.

Gurze Books- Eating Disorder Resources!

Gurze Books is a GREAT resource for information, resources, books, etc on eating disorders that has been around since 1980. It is a publishing company and its logo is located to the right. Gurze has a very user friendly website, located at http://www.bulimia.com and can be accessed by clicking here. There is something for everyone on this site, whether you are a parent of a child with an eating disorder, have an eating disorder yourself, or are a professional who wants more information on eating disorders. Check it out!

Beyond Eating Disorders Workshops

I wanted to highlight an opportunity for those of you who are interested in participating in an eating disorder recovery weekend workshop. There have been a few Beyond Eating Disorder workshops held recently, and the next one is being held October 16-18. It is likely that this workshop is near capacity, so if you are unable to attend in a few weeks, future workshops will be held in the coming months. I will make sure to advertise them on my blog, so that you will have more information. Thom Rutledge, a psychotherapist, author and speaker who I mentioned in a previous post, is holding these workshops outside of Nashville, TN in conjunction with Julie Merryman. If you are interested, or know someone who may be interested, follow this LINK for information! A link to Thom's website can be found here as well.