Dr. Janet Treasure, an internationally renowned expert in eating disorders, offers her insight on parent/child co-current eating disorder - a topic she will be discussing at the upcoming symposium on April 12, 2008, hosted by The Center for Eating Disorders at Sheppard Pratt.

The symposium will serve to educate the professional community on how to support and promote eating disorder prevention efforts. Keep an eye out for interviews with other experts as we get closer to the date!

How common is it to have parent/child co-occurring eating disorders?

Though there are no concrete figures, about less than 5% of eating disorder cases are parent/child co-occurring. This is not to say, however, that a parent’s eating disorder does not have a monumental impact on how a child perceives eating habits and body image.

Are children of parents with eating disorders more or less likely to receive treatment?

The good news is that preliminary findings show that children of parents with eating disorders are more likely to get treatment early. However, there is also evidence that the outcome of treatment is less successful if there is a family history of an eating disorder.

How does one intervene when the parent of a child is identified to have an eating disorder?

Unfortunately, there is no simple answer to this question. It depends on numerous things and its important to consider such things as:

• Whether the parent themselves has acknowledged that they have an eating disorder;
• Whether it is thought that the parental eating attitudes are acting as maintaining factors for the child’s eating disorder;
• Whether or not the co-parent is involved.

The most important step is ensuring that the entire family is involved. Sharing common goals, such as working together to ensure that they are not maintaining the illness by enabling behaviors, and aiming to help the individuals with an eating disorder overcome eating disorder behaviors. Families need to make sure that the individuals are eating socially with sufficient amounts and nutrients. It is especially important for the parent without an eating disorder to play a key role. This may involve several stages:

1. Coming to terms with guilt or avoidance in the feeling that they have not been able to provide a safe protected environment for their child.

2. Understanding that their child’s eating disorder is different than that of their spouses and the realization that management plans in dealing with the eating disorders will have to be different.

3. The role of a spouse is very different from that of a parent in supporting an individual with an eating disorder. Developmental stages and emotional maturity will need to be factored at all times.

4. Understanding that while a spouse is dealing with an eating disorder, it will make it difficult for them to play a balanced care-giving role.

5. Providing balance in dealing with both eating disorder cases.

Read more about Dr. Janet Treasure.

If you are a mental health professional and are interested in hearing Dr. Treasure speak on this subject, you can register for the April 12th symposium.