Eating Disorders

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Researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health have just released the data on the largest and most representative study ever completed on teen eating disorder prevalence. What they found? – More than half a million American teens suffer from an eating disorder and more than half of these kids also live at least one other mental illness.

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Researchers at Carnegie Melon University say that by imagining yourself eating something, you trick your brain into getting ‘bored’ of that particular food, and as a result eat less of it.

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Researchers at Harvard Medical School say that the Brazilian diet pills used by million of Americans can contain pharmaceutical substances (like amphetamines) and can be dangerous and addictive.

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Researchers say that food product placements in movies tend to promote high calorie and low nutrient foods and that kids and teens may be unduly influenced by these placements.

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Ever get a chocolate craving? Well, if you’re a stressed out choco-loving lab mouse – you’ll brave electric shocks to satisfy your desire for chocolate.

• Stress and Mental Illness: Teen Stress Ups Adult Mental Illness Risk
• Drug Cravings: The Sex Differences of Drug Cravings
• PTSD: Researchers Identify Hormone Linked to PTSD Risk

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Binge eating disorder, a condition that affects an estimated 2% to 5% of Americans over a lifetime, is now a recognized disorder to be included in the upcoming edition of the DSM – the bible of psychological disorders.

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1 in 3 overweight or obese teens fails to recognize that they have a weight problem.

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• Sedentary Teens: Teens Spending 7 Hours or More a Day in front of a Screen
• Teen Binge Drinking: Authoritative Parenst Protect Teens from Binge Drinking

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If we all stopped eating once sated then none of us would become overweight. Unfortunately, many of us will continue to eat something tasty even after we’re full. Scientists think they’ve identified the hormone that makes us do this and have shown that if they blocked it – we probably wouldn’t overeat anymore.

• Teen Substance Abuse: 75% of American Teens Using Drugs or Alcohol
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• Quick and Easy Online Intervention Helps Problem Drinkers Cut-Down by 30%

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Researchers at the Scripps Institute say that not only does Yoyo dieting fail to induce lasting weight loss, it can actually trigger a drug withdrawal-like stress response in the brain that can lead to overeating and weight gain.

• In UK, Obesity to Become Leading Cause of Cirrhosis within 20 Years

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Rats fed an ‘all you can eat’ buffet diet of cheesecake and bacon may provide answers to questions about the root causes of overeating behaviors and obesity.