New insights on eating disorders

Scientists are uncovering the faulty neurobiology behind anorexia and bulimia, debunking the myth that such eating disorders are solely driven by culture and environment.

By Kirsten Weir
April 2016, Vol 47, No. 4
Print version: page 36
New insights on eating disorders
Public misunderstanding of mental health disorders is nothing new. But for eating disorders in particular, misinformation abounds.
"You still read more about anorexia in the celebrity section of publications than in health sections," says Nancy Zucker, PhD, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University. "The emphasis is on it being a culturally guided phenomenon."
Even medical definitions of eating disorders have often focused on external factors, including cultural pressures, parents' attitudes toward weight and diet, and stressful or traumatic events that might trigger disordered eating habits.
While the environment certainly plays a part in shaping the behaviors, evidence is mounting that eating disorders begin in the brain.
"Lots of people diet or want to lose weight, but relatively few of them end up with anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa," says Walter Kaye, MD, director of the Eating Disorders Treatment and Research Program at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine.
In fact, fewer than 1 percent of women develop anorexia, the more severe of those two diseases. "Culture plays some role — but maybe less so than we thought in the past," Kaye says.
Now, researchers including Kaye are beginning to sort out the brain regions and neural circuits that underlie the illnesses. For the millions of Americans who suffer from anorexia and bulimia, it's a welcome step toward better interventions for the notoriously hard-to-treat illnesses.
"People die from these disorders," Kaye says. "It's critical that we understand the contributing factors and develop new treatment approaches."