About.com Eating Disorders

Forum Post of the Week: Health Versus Weight

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:09:58 +0000

How do you answer the question of health versus weight? If you had to choose, would you get your weight where you want it, or would you be physically healthy? As this forum thread suggests, many with eating disorders choose differently than one might expect.

It's a concrete example of distorted thinking. We can get fooled (by advertisements, for example) into wanting something even though it isn't healthy for us. But those with eating disorders are willing to make a conscious choice to sacrifice health for weight loss or weight maintenance.

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Forum Post of the Week: Health Versus Weight originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 05:09:58.

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Eating Disorder Group Puts Real Models on the Runway

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:29:07 +0000

For the 5th consecutive year, the Alliance for Eating Disorders has held a fashion show employing models with realistic proportions.

It's remarkable how strong this trend is becoming. Could it be that a significant slice of our population is truly exhausted with more stereotypical models?

The first dip into the "real models" pool
The Academy of Eating Disorder's guidelines for the fashion industry
The struggle to introduce reality into modeling

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Eating Disorder Group Puts Real Models on the Runway originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Thursday, November 19th, 2009 at 04:29:07.

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Misused Weight-Loss Drug

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:35:46 +0000

So you create a weight-loss drug, Alli, and put it in an environment in which it's supposed to be given to people who are overweight...and then it ends up in the hands of people who aren't overweight.

It's not a case of people getting the stuff on some kind of black market. It's people buying it over the counter in Ireland. According to licensing conditions, pharmacists in Ireland can't sell Alli to anyone who's of normal weight or underweight. But eight out of 20 pharmacies sold the drug to a researcher who is well under the "overweight" threshold.

Not a good situation. But I wonder: How is a customer supposed to verify that his or her body mass index is in the proper range to be given the drug without a prescription? Must there be a scale in each pharmacy? I can't imagine a good system.

Can you?

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Misused Weight-Loss Drug originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Saturday, November 14th, 2009 at 15:35:46.

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The Public Option Rises Again

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:59:14 +0000

Apparently, reports of the death of the "public option" in current health care legislation were premature. The House of Representatives passed a health are reform bill that includes a health insurance plan offered by the federal government.

The new bill, the Affordable Health Care for America Act (H.R.3962), replaces the previous bill (H.R.3200) originated in the House. H.R.3962 passed by the slimmest of margins, but passed nonetheless.

What would this bill mean for you if the Senate passes similar legislation and it becomes law? If you don't have insurance coverage now, you probably will. If you're a low-income American, you may qualify for a subsidy to help you buy health insurance. More employers will be providing coverage for their employees.

Perhaps more importantly, the bill prohibits your health insurer from refusing coverage (or charging different rates) based on your medical history. This could have an impact on those with eating disorders, since medical problems are common.

I haven't seen anything about whether you should expect to see your insurance rates rise under these conditions. Insurance companies charge high-risk customers more and low-risk customers less. If these charges have to be the same across all customers, you may see the rates on your current policy rise (or fall, if you're a high-risk person). Unless, of course, you end up with the public option.

Health risks associated with eating disorders
How connected are body mass index and health?
Troubling dance between eating disorders and diabetes

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The Public Option Rises Again originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Monday, November 9th, 2009 at 14:59:14.

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Forum Post of the Week: Dealing With Hair Loss

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 09:17:59 +0000

When nutrition suffers, your hair can suffer, too. A college junior posted in the forum about her hair loss and received some surprisingly practical responses from other readers. Maybe you have experience with losing hair from an eating disorder, or regaining it as your health improved. Join the discussion!

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Forum Post of the Week: Dealing With Hair Loss originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Sunday, November 8th, 2009 at 09:17:59.

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When the Parent Has the Disorder: Impact on the Family

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:06:56 +0000

We often hear about how a family may have impacted a person with an eating disorder (though I'll note that some dispute that the family has much to do with it). And we hear about how a person with an eating disorder impacts her family.

What about when the person with the disorder is the mother in the family? Some people develop eating disorders in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and beyond. They may have spouses, kids...with responsibilities that adolescents simply don't yet have.

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When the Parent Has the Disorder: Impact on the Family originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Saturday, November 7th, 2009 at 05:06:56.

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College Transition is a Vulnerable Time

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:27:30 +0000

It can be intimidating to face the adjustment to college. The studying intensifies, of course, but there's also a new burden - freedom. When you're on your own, you have more choices, which can be fun, but also many more stressors. Eating disorders tend to "simplify" a stressful life by making all other problems seem insignificant by comparison.

What parents can do when a teen heads to college
Challenges for female athletes
College environment can make drunkorexia seem more attractive

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College Transition is a Vulnerable Time originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Friday, November 6th, 2009 at 08:27:30.

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Raise Your Potato Chip and Salute!

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:32:07 +0000

I feel compelled to comment on a quote from Karl Lagerfeld, head designer at Chanel. In response to the notion that some people would like to see more "normal"-sized models, Lagerfeld offered this:

"No one wants to see curvy women...You've got fat mothers with their bags of chips sitting in front of the television and saying that thin models are ugly."

Is he saying that all fat women are mothers, or all mothers are fat? Both? Not clear. I'm also aware that Chanel advertises on those televisions pretty regularly. Hmm.

Plenty more could be said about this statement; I'll leave that to you. My understanding is that Lagerfeld has since apologized for this statement. Good choice. He could follow up by varying his lineup of models a bit. We can dream!

Should moms eating chips go on a diet?
How statements (and other events) can trigger eating disorders
Are you an emotional eater?

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Raise Your Potato Chip and Salute! originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 05:32:07.

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In the Minds of Your Sons and Daughters

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:49:49 +0000

Parents, do you wonder how your adolescent can do things to herself (or himself) that are so damaging and yet act as though nothing is amiss? If you've never had a good look at what's happening behind your adolescent's eyes, it may surprise you.

10 common (and brutal) examples of self-talk in your adolescent's mind
When pro-anorexia sites pick up steam...
Book resource: Dealing with self-talk problems

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In the Minds of Your Sons and Daughters originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Monday, November 2nd, 2009 at 20:49:49.

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What Is "Evidence-Based" Treatment?

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:01:46 +0000

A phrase that appears more and more in all kinds of mental health treatment literature is "evidence-based treatment." The idea is very sound: Those who practice evidence-based treatment use only methods that have significant scientific evidence behind them.

But how much evidence? What kind of evidence? And in the world of eating disorders, what treatments rise to the top?

Explore evidence-based treatments for EDs
Why refeeding is so important when anorexia treatment starts
Counseling options for bulimia

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What Is "Evidence-Based" Treatment? originally appeared on About.com Eating Disorders on Sunday, November 1st, 2009 at 20:01:46.

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