The National Eating Disorders Association has provided 10 tips to help kids have a healthy relationship with food.

"There are no 'good' or 'bad' foods, so eat lots of different foods, including fruits, vegetables and even sweets sometimes."

Other tips include not eating when you're bored or sad, getting involved in a sport you like, and being careful not to equate being super thin with being healthy or happy. Source: SacBee.com.

Labels: emotions, food, relationships

An ongoing study being conducted by colleagues at Duke and the University of North Carolina is finding that many people who develop eating disorders first struggled with interpersonal relationships because they felt self-conscious and anxious.

[Dr. Nancy Zucker] said she hopes to discover more detailed information about how individuals with anorexia process social interactions and whether they perceive relationships the same way as unaffected individuals."

If results continue to support the theory that people who struggle with social interaction are more prone to develop eating disorders, it could change significantly the way the disorders are treated. The focus could shift from that of diet and body image to the development of interpersonal and other skills needed to build meaningful relationships.

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Labels: relationships, support, treatment

Teasing children about their weights is a factor that creates both over- and underweight teenagers, according to a new study from the University of Minnesota.

Children who were teased about their weights were later more likely to become to become overweight and/or participate in extreme weight control habits such as vomiting or taking diet pills.

Researchers led by Dr. Diane Neumark-Sztainer surveyed 2,516 teenagers and found several other factors also put them at risk for extreme weight control measures including having a dieting mother, being preoccupied with weight, being teased by peers about weight issues, and reading diet magazines. However, teasing by family members was the biggest risk factor.

"It points to a need for extreme sensitivity when dealing with overweight kids," Dr. Neumark-Sztainer said. "My message is talk less, do more. If you put healthy food on the table, kids will eat it."

This study appears in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine

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Labels: influences, pressures, relationships