Friday Round Up and a Birthday Celebration

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A few interesting recently published studies:

1. Assessing eating disorder symptoms in adolescence: Is there a role for multiple informants?
Findings: Epidemiologic eating disorder studies should consider the potential value added from incorporating parental reports, particularly in studies of males. 

Interesting....Yes!  Ask Parents what they see.  Wouldn't you think?! (especially with an illness where patient may be anosognosic).

2. Mandating weekly weight gain in a day treatment program for eating disorders.

Findings: Post-treatment weight was significantly higher in patients treated in the required weight gain protocol compared to those treated in the recommended weight gain protocol. All patients, regardless of which program they completed, showed improvements in the measures of eating-disorder and comorbid-psychiatric symptoms.

Interesting.....'required' weight gain protocol yielded significant higher results than 'recommended' weight gain protocol.  I guess that is why LSUYE (Life Stops Until You Eat) yields higher results than "Please, finish if you can".


3. Rank perception and self-evaluation in eating disorders.

Findings:  People with EDs showed vigilance toward social rank-related stimuli and lower implicit positive self-evaluation than HCs. Self-report data confirmed the behavioral findings and showed that people with EDs had higher levels of unfavorable social comparison, submissive behaviors, and external and internal shame than HCs. People who had recovered from an ED showed an intermediate profile between the two groups.

Interesting.....that low self-evaluation is a 'symptom' not  necessarily pre-existing.  I quite hate the term 'low self-esteem'  (never sure what the heck it means)  and I absolutely hate the prevailing pop-culture notion that eating disorders are the providence of 'girls with 'low self-esteem'.  The plummet in self-esteem (self-evaluation) often comes after onset.

and, finally....

The Helix committee in the UK has announced the "I choose to give" campaign to commemorate Charlotte's birthday.  Charlotte's birthday is this week.  It is the first birthday since her death and we all still miss her madly.  Laura has written a wonderful blog piece today about how we can channel the missing and do our bit to continue Charlotte's work.  Find it here:  Laura's Soap Box: Celebrating Charlotte's Birthday.


Happy Weekend!!!

Comments

  1. UnknownJuly 11, 2014 at 12:37 PM

    Great research update - much to think about and particularly relevant for us parents. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete

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