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Q: Are eating disorders addictions? ( Answered,   1 Comment )
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Subject: Are eating disorders addictions?
Category: Health
Asked by: st2142-ga
List Price: $40.00
Posted: 25 Apr 2006 18:26 PDT
Expires: 25 May 2006 18:26 PDT
Question ID: 722820
Are eating disorders addictions?  I need the information to be from
scholarly articles.  I need enough information to be able to write
about a 2 page, double-spaced response.
Answer  
Subject: Re: Are eating disorders addictions?
Answered By: crabcakes-ga on 26 Apr 2006 22:14 PDT
 
Hello St2142,

?Are eating disorders addictions? ?

   It depends on who you ask! There is no short and easy answer. It
appears that people with personality disorders can have eating
disorders with concurrent drug and/or alcohol addictions. Broadly
defined, it appears that eating disorders could fit the definition of
an addiction ? continued use of a substance (food) known by the eater
to be harmful in some way.

?The excessive exercising that is frequently observed in anorexia
nervosa (AN) has been viewed both as an addictive behavior and as a
type of obsessive compulsive disorder.?
http://www.jonmd.com/pt/re/jnmd/abstract.00005053-199906000-00002.htm;jsessionid=EQC2LvGNT4L2S6xWigDZR92b6SRFkueXmYJ9luUmrgl4bmfD0AaG!389595325!-949856144!9001!-1


?Binge eating disorder is often associated with obesity. In the past
these individuals were often referred to as compulsive overeaters,
emotional overeaters, or food addicts. Available research suggests
that approximately one fifth of the people who seek professional
treatment for obesity meet the criteria for binge eating disorder.
In the American Psychiatric Association?s Diagnostic and Statistical
Manual (DSM- IV-TR), binge eating disorder is not an officially
recognized eating disorder, but is included in the category titled
Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS).?
http://www.aedweb.org/eating_disorders/diagnoses.cfm


?Eating disorders are illnesses with a biological basis modified and
influenced by emotional and cultural factors. The stigma associated
with eating disorders has long kept individuals suffering in silence,
inhibited funding for crucial research and created barriers to
treatment. Because of insufficient information, the public and
professionals fail to recognize the dangerous consequences of eating
disorders.?
http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/p.asp?WebPage_ID=807


   According to the Houghton Mifflin Medical Dictionary, addiction is
described as: ?Habitual psychological and physiological dependence on
a substance or practice beyond one's voluntary control.?
http://www.answers.com/addiction&r=67


   Merriam Webster?s Medical Dictionary says: ?compulsive
physiological need for and use of a habit-forming substance (as
heroin, nicotine, or alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by
well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal; broadly :
persistent compulsive use of a substance known by the user to be
physically, psychologically, or socially harmful?
http://www2.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/mwmednlm?book=Medical&va=addiction



?Summary: If anorexics and bulimics are addicted to dieting, eating
disorders may well be treated with anti-addiction drugs.?
?A Detroit scientist tested naltrexone, the drug of choice for kicking
the heroin habit, in 19 women with anorexia or bulimia. The women also
underwent psychotherapy. All but one patient responded. The six-week
course of drug and therapy reduced the bingeing and purging, and even
the urge to binge, in bulimics. Anorexics stabilized their weight.

Mary Ann Marrazzi, Ph.D., believes that anorexics and bulimics may be
biologically predisposed to an addiction cycle that is set into motion
by chronic dieting. In response to self-starvation, she surmises, the
brain releases opioids, known to cause a "high."
http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-19950301-000008.html



   ?Technically, addiction refers to a biological state in which two
conditions must be met. First, greater amounts of the substance must
be required over time to produce the same desired effect. Second, when
the person decreases the amount of the substance consumed, substantial
withdrawal symptoms occur.?
?Food doesn?t work this way. So technically, your child does not have
a food addiction. However, your overweight child may well have a
psychological dependence on food ? a relationship with food that is
quite unhealthy both physically and emotionally.?
http://www.academyofthesierras.com/foodaddiction.html



?Food addictions can be halted when they are identified early. Some of
the more common behaviors to look for include:

* Preoccupation with food. This shows up as overconcern about when the
next meal is, what it consist of, and when the meal after that will
be. Food addicts concern themselves  more with food than with the
people in their families. Many times the persons with food  addictions
will prepare of help prepare the food so as to give them greater
access to it.

* Secret eating. The person sneaks off and eats food in a manner to
avoid being seen. The  person may also be overly concerned with others
watching them eat. The secretiveness  often included sneaking and
stealing food. Many times children exhibiting such behaviors  are
viewed as "cute" and the behavior is laughed at or ignored. Sweets and
chocolate are  often the foods of choice. Secrecy often hides the
danger of such behavior, even to the  point of hiding the food or
candy wrappers. Rapid eating is another easily observed clue
associated with problem behavior.?
http://www.pasadenaisd.org/ParentUniversity/parent12.htm




Food Addiction: ?How common is it?
It is particularly common in young women, although more men are now
being diagnosed with eating disorders of one form or another. Many
sufferers also have other forms of addiction.?

?Can it be cured? 
?As with other addictions recovery is very possible, and compulsive
behaviour can be changed. Help is available through the various
organisations listed in the Web Links or Getting Help Pages.?
http://www.addictions.co.uk/addiction.asp?id=food





   ?A similarity between eating disorders and drug addiction is that
the addiction is compulsively developed into an even stronger form
regardless of the effect on the patient's health. Despite serious
medical complications, it is difficult for addicts to give up their
addiction. More. Starvation in anorexia reduces the activity of the
hormone Serotonin and this in turn reduces anxiety in a patient with
an overactive nervous system. More. Patients with anorexia are, less
often than others, drug addicts and alcoholics while those with other
eating disorders more often are so. Those anorectics who alternate
between eating attacks and starvation are more like bulimics.?
?Research shows, for example, that personality types that more often
feel stress and anxiety, need more stimulation in order to feel well.?
http://web4health.info/en/answers/ed-causes-addictive.htm


   The Psychiatric Times states: ?Although comprehensive theories of
addiction recognize the etiological importance of environmental and
cognitive factors, it has been widely accepted for many years that
addiction is also a brain disease and that individuals differ in their
susceptibility to this condition (Leshner, 1997; Wise and Bozarth,
1987). Explanations of the eating disorders have tended to eschew
biological models in favor of those that focus on psychosocial and
family influences-the most prominent models arising from
psychoanalytic, feminist and cultural theory. It is not surprising,
therefore, that although clear parallels exist between the abuse of
substances and disturbances in eating, there has been a reluctance to
accept that the two may share a common etiology. It is also probable
that their similarities were obscured by dramatic differences?
and

   ?Others have suggested that the eating disorders are, themselves, a
form of drug addiction since their characteristics satisfy all the
clinical and biological criteria for conventional addictions such as
smoking, alcoholism and cocaine abuse (Davis and Claridge, 1998; Davis
et al., 1999; Marrazzi and Luby, 1986). Foremost among these is the
progressively compulsive nature of the behavior, even in the face of
adverse consequences to health and safety (Heyman, 1996; Robinson and
Berridge, 1993). Moreover, with continual exposure, individuals
typically require more of the behavior to produce the same reinforcing
effect?
http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/p010259.html


   ?The most recent version of the Diagnostic Statistical Manual
(DMS-IV), published by the American Psychiatric Association, defines
bulimia as recurrent episodes of binge eating, along with attempts to
compensate for this behavior by purging, fasting or excessive
exercising, at least twice a week. While this clinical definition is
helpful when diagnosing the problem, it may lead some to look for a
quick solution: a parent to blame it on, or a pill to take.?
http://www.troubledwith.com/stellent/groups/public/%5C@fotf_troubledwith/documents/articles/twi_016608.cfm?channel=Abuse%20and%20Addiction&topic=Eating%20Disorders&sssct=Background%20Info


   ?Food Addiction as defined by the Illinois Institute for Addiction
Recovery (IIAR) in Proctor Hospital, Peoria, Illinois.
http://www.addictionrecov.org/index2.htm


   Food addiction is a disorder characterized by preoccupation with
food, the availability of food and the anticipation of pleasure from
the ingestion of food. Food addiction involves the repetitive
consumption of food against the individual?s better judgment resulting
in loss of control and preoccupation or the restriction of food and
preoccupation with body weight and image. There are three basic types
of food addiction?  ?
http://www.ssw.pdx.edu/focus/addictions/pdfFoodAddictions.pdf


   ?Blaming others for our "addictions" is popular today.
In Canada, some lawyers are suing the government, saying it is
responsible for getting people addicted to video slot machines.

Jean Brochu says he was unable to resist the slot machines ? that he
was "sick." He says the government made him sick, and his sickness led
him to embezzle $50,000. Now, he's suing the government to restore his
dignity and pay his therapy bills.

Psychologist Jeff Schaler, author of Addiction Is a Choice, argues
that people have more control over their behavior than they think.
"Addiction is a behavior and all behaviors are choices," Schaler says.
"What's next, are we going to blame fast-food restaurants for the
foods that they sell based on the marketing, because the person got
addicted to hamburgers and french fries?"
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=90688&page=1


?Eating Disorders -When Coping Becomes Addiction
http://www.troubledwith.com/stellent/groups/public/%5C@fotf_troubledwith/documents/articles/twi_013125.cfm?channel=Abuse%20and%20Addiction&topic=Eating%20Disorders&sssct=Background%20Info


   ?Food Addiction Engaging repeatedly in episodes of binge eating
despite negative consequences. Symptoms include cravings,
impulsiveness, loss of control, secretiveness, stealing food/candy,
and the inability to feel satisfied. The food addict is relentlessly
pursued by thoughts of food and are unable to distract themselves
until they gain access to their binge food.?

?For the food addict, avoidance becomes a way of life. Sex and
intimacy become a thing of the past--mirrors and photos are dreaded.
Food addicts hide behind certain colors and clothes. Because the food
addict is so focused on their weight, body shape and size, they
postpone life events for "when I get thin." Class reunions, social
events, parties, etc. are too unbearable to face. Future birthdays and
"next Monday" become target dates for "changing my life." Until the
distorted view of the ideal body type is reached, the beach, the pool,
the park are off limits.?
http://www.tpoftampa.com/html/programs/residential/eating_disorders/ed_terms.html


   ?In addition, some people suffering with an Eating Disorder may
also be exhibiting other addictive or self-destructive behaviors. As
an Eating Disorder is a reaction to a low self-esteem, and a negative
means of coping with life and stress, so are other types of
addictions. These can include alcoholism, drug addiction (illegal,
prescription and/or over-the-counter medications), and self-injury,
cutting and self-mutilation.?
http://www.something-fishy.org/isf/mentalhealth.php


Addiction Intervention Resources certainly feels anorexia is an addiction:
http://www.addictionintervention.com/addiction/anorexia.asp


   ?A number of theories have been proposed to explain the substantial
comorbidity between the eating disorders and the substance-related
disorders. Among them is the claim that self-starvation--exacerbated
by excessive exercising--is itself an addiction to the body's
endogenous opioids. While efforts have also been made to identify an
"addictive personality," attempts to establish whether
eating-disordered patients share these characteristics have met with
mixed success.?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9698975&dopt=Citation



   ?Addictions and compulsions are destructive behaviors that an
individual acquires as a method of coping with the pressures of life.
Some addictions have genetic components and are passed down through
biological families. Alcohol and drug addictions are examples of
genetic conditions. Other addictions can be linked to survival
reactions in response to family trauma. Sex addictions and eating
disorders can have roots in emotional, physical, or sexual abuse.
Addictions such as overwork, gambling, overspending, smoking, and
compulsive exercise appear to be the result of bad habits. Most
addictive behaviors are maladaptive responses to unresolved trauma.?
http://www.pureintimacy.org/gr/intimacy/understanding/a0000132.cfm



   ?If the number on your bathroom scale seems to be rising faster
than the national debt, and if you repeatedly find yourself piling
food onto your oversized plate in an almost reckless manner at
all-you-can-eat buffet lines, could you be captive of a "food
addiction"??
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/85/98821.htm


   ?Are the obese addicted to food, much as some are addicted to
drugs? The results of a new study suggest the answer may be yes.
Gene-Jack Wang and Nora Volkow of the Brookhaven National Laboratory
and their colleagues have discovered that obese people seem to share a
neurochemical deficiency with many cocaine and alcohol abusers. In
short, they have fewer brain receptors for dopamine, a
neurotransmitter associated with producing feelings of satisfaction.
The results will appear in the February 3rd issue of the journal
theLancet.?
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=0003A514-BAD4-1C5A-B882809EC588ED9F


   ?Good evening, Debbie and welcome to HealthyPlace.com. We
appreciate you being our guest tonight. Can you describe for us your
life as a food addict?
Debbie Danowski: Hello everyone it's great to be here. Being a food
addict is similar to being an alcoholic: everything revolves around
the substance and life is miserable. Nothing matters except getting
food.

David: What were the reasons behind your food addiction?

Debbie Danowski: The reasons are a physical and emotional addiction to
sugar and flour that is passed down in families. For instance, both of
my grandfathers were alcoholics but I turned to food instead.?
http://www.healthyplace.com/Communities/Eating_Disorders/Site/transcripts/food_addiction.htm


   ?Anorexia is an addiction to weight loss and dieting and to the
whole cycle of self-denial and social praise that come with weight
loss. The other major form of eating disorder, bulimia, is an
addiction to "bingeing" on food especially high carbohydrate "junk",
and then "purging" by induced vomiting, use of laxatives, use of
diuretics, heavy exercise, or combination of these activities.?
http://www.ga.k12.pa.us/students/us/support/gain.shtml


Another resource (non-copy-able)
http://www.foodaddiction.com/Publications/Anorexia&FoodAddiction.pdf



You can purchase this scholarly article for $10 USD:
ADDICTION: 'Behavioral' Addictions: Do They Exist?
Holden
Science 2 November 2001: 980-982
DOI: 10.1126/science.294.5544.980

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/294/5544/980



   I hope all this information assists you in writing your paper.
Don?t forget to read the posted sites in their entirety, for complete
information.

  If anything is unclear, please request an Answer Clarification and
allow me to respond, before you rate. I?ll be happy to assist you,
before you rate.

Good Luck! 
Sincerely, Crabcakes



Search Terms
============

addictions + food
anorexia + addiction
addiction
eating disorders + addiction

Clarification of Answer by crabcakes-ga on 29 Apr 2006 12:03 PDT
Hello again,

   My colleage Pafalafa-ga passed on some additional information that
I'm sure you will feel is useful (Thank you Paf!:


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12117571&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Physiol Behav. 2002 Jul;76(3):347-52

Of human bondage: food craving, obsession, compulsion, and addiction.
Pelchat ML.
Monell Chemical Senses Center, 3500 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA
19104, USA. pelchat@monell.org

...Is it more than a linguistic accident that the same term, craving,
is used to describe intense desires for both foods and for a variety
of drugs of abuse? There is strong evidence for common pathways that
are affected by most addictive drugs. As the other contributors to
this volume will indicate, a strong case can also be made for some
shared substrates for food and drug rewards in animals.



http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=1891404&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Nurs Clin North Am. 1991 Sep;26(3):715-26

Eating disorders as addictive behavior. Integrating 12-step programs
into treatment planning.
Riley EA.
Acute Adult Unit, Four Winds Hospital--Saratoga, Saratoga Springs, New York.

...To be effective in treating eating-disordered individuals, we must
be open to working with an electric model of treatment. Often health
care providers have difficulty with the addiction model of treatment,
even though many eating-disordered patients will attest to the
assistance and support they receive from these programs.




http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=2668488&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
J Psychoactive Drugs. 1989 Apr-Jun;21(2):239-49

Dual diagnosis: eating disorders and psychoactive substance dependence.
Yeary JR, Heck CL.
Henry Ohlhoff Outpatient Programs, San Francisco, California

...studies indicate that it is not uncommon for individuals to have
psychoactive substance dependence and an eating disorder
simultaneously.




http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=2646614&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Nurs Clin North Am. 1989 Mar;24(1):45-53

Addictive eating disorders.
Flood M.
Community Psychiatric Center, Millwood Hospital, Arlington, Texas

...Addictive eating disorders have been a part of history and have
only recently been recognized as psychiatric disorders. Increased
publicity has enabled family and friends of eating disordered
individuals to recognize the disease and seek help for them from
trained medical professionals.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=16231336&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Int J Eat Disord. 2006 Jan;39(1):27-34

Who is providing what type of psychotherapy to eating disorder clients? A survey.
von Ranson KM, Robinson KE.
Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta,
Canada. kvonrans@ucalgary.ca

...Little is known about the psychotherapies delivered to
eating-disordered clients by community therapists...The most common
primary therapeutic orientations of respondents were eclectic therapy
(50%), cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT; 33%), and addiction-based
therapy (6%)





http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15617174&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Presse Med. 2004 Oct 23;33(18 Suppl):33-40

The auto-addictive hypothesis of pathological eating disorders
Lienard Y, Vamecq J.
Clinique des maladies mentales et de l'encephale, Paris (75). yasminekb@free.fr

...Addiction to an endogenous chemical is a new paradigm termed
'self-addiction'. It may contribute to the development of certain
habits, the pathological nature of which may set-in on the basis of
this "self-addictive"dimension. Pathological eating habits could be
inscribed in this perspective.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15115213&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Subst Use Misuse. 2004 Mar;39(4):551-79

Alexithymia, depressive experiences, and dependency in addictive disorders.
Speranza M, Corcos M, Stephan P, Loas G, Perez-Diaz F, Lang F, Venisse
JL, Bizouard P, Flament M, Halfon O, Jeammet P.
Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Psychiatrie de l'Enfant et de
l'Adolescent, Fondation Vallee, Gentilly, France.
mariosperanza@wanadoo.fr

...Alexithymia, depressive feelings, and dependency are interrelated
dimensions that are considered potential "risk factors" for addictive
disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships
between these dimensions and to define a comprehensive model of
addiction in a large sample of addicted subjects, whether affected by
an eating disorder or presenting an alcohol- or a drug use-related
disorder.





http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=14498813&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Psychol Addict Behav. 2003 Sep;17(3):193-201

Disordered eating and substance use in an epidemiological sample: II.
Associations within families.
von Ranson KM, McGue M, Iacono WG.
Dept of Psychology, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Campus,
Minneapolis, MN, USA. kvonrans@ucalgary.ca

...results suggest that these problems are not cross-transmitted
within families and suggest that the addiction model of eating
disorders may be simplistic


http://projectcork.org/bibliographies/data/Bibliography_Eating_Disorders.html
Becker AE; Keel P; Anderson-Fye EP; Thomas JJ.

Genes and/or jeans?: Genetic and socio-cultural contributions to risk
for eating disorders. (review).
Journal of Addictive Diseases 23(3): 81-103, 2004

...This paper reviews the data supporting both socio-cultural and
genetic contributions for eating disorders and suggests productive
future strategies for continuing to unravel their likely multiple and
complex interactions.




Corcos M; Jeammet P.
A psychosomatic approach of food addict behaviors.

Sciences des Aliments 24(1): 71-83, 2004

...Numerous authors suggest that narcissistic anxieties lie behind the
addictive impass in eating disorders. This may therefore be
conceptualised as a narcissistic structure defending against
disruptive anxieties.




Goodrick GK.
Inability to control eating: Addiction to food or normal response to
abnormal environment?
Drugs & Society 15(1/2): 123-140, 2000

...apparent lack of control has led some to describe overeating as an
addiction. This paper briefly reviews the problem of overeating by
examining the associated phenomenological, psychological correlates of
excessive appetite.



Regards, Crabcakes
Comments  
Subject: Re: Are eating disorders addictions?
From: tbird81-ga on 30 Apr 2006 03:33 PDT
 
There are a number of criteria for something to be classified (by DSM
or similar) as dependence.

For alcohol and drugs it's usually 3 of these 7:

Tolerance
Withdrawal
Doing/using more than intended
Many attempts to cut down
Great deal of time
Social, job, or rec activities cut down
Continued use despite known health problems

The last three can apply to an eating disorder.

Now this doesn't mean that eating disorders ARE an addiction. Just
that if you take the alcohol dependence criteria, you can fit eating
disorders in to fit enough points.

Lots of mental illness could be small round pegged, square-holed this way.

Eating disorders cannot be treated the way other addictions are
treated. Having said this, eating disorders are incredibly difficult
to treat anyway!

People have had eating disorders throughout history, they are not a
new thing. We can't necessarily blame it on women's magazines. But
there is obviously some learnt behaviours involved.

But to get onto topic, in short, an addiction is an addiction, and
eating disorder is an eating disorder. They've got stuff in common:
everything does.

It all depends on how you define addiction and how you define an eating disorder.

Is a chair a table? Sometimes. :-D

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