Eating Disorders Blog

Several studies have identified inflated rates of childhood trauma among obese adults.

Dr. Vincent Felitti, founder of Kaiser Permanente's Department of Preventive Medicine and director of its obesity treatment program, began tracing the phenomenon in the late 1980s. He conducted a study of 286 obese adults and found that 50 percent had been sexually abused as children. This rate is 50 percent higher than the rate normally reported by women, and more than triple the rate normally reported by men.

A study of more than 11,000 California women, conducted in 2007, found that those who had been abused as children were 27 percent more likely to be obese in adulthood, compared with those who had not been abused. A study of 15,000 adolescents, conducted in 2009, found that males who suffered sexual abuse as children were 66 percent more likely to be obese as adults.

The study also found a higher risk of eating disorders in girls who had been sexually abused.

(Source: www.time.com)

Labels: eating disorder, obesity, trauma

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People who survive sexual abuse are more prone to suicide, anxiety, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression and eating disorders, according to a new study from the Mayo Clinic.

Ali Zirakzadeh and his colleagues found that sexual abuse runs as high as 21% in adults and 33% in children.

"Survivors of sexual abuse are commonly seen in general medical practice," he said. "Sexual abuse survivors face a challenging spectrum of physical and mental health symptoms, which results in high health care utilization, often times without improvement in their quality of life."

The study was published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
 

Labels: trauma, depression, sexual assault

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