http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060316/REPOSITORY/603160365/1013/48HOURS"Researchers studying anorexia in twins conclude that more than half a person's risk for developing the sometimes fatal eating disorder is determined by genes.
Most experts already believe there is a strong genetic component to the disorder, which mostly affects girls and women. The new study "hammers home the fact that these are biologically based disorders," said Cynthia Bulik, lead author of the study who is a psychiatrist at the School of Medicine at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
"We need to stop viewing them as a choice. . . . The patients feel guilty, the providers tell them things like they should just eat, parents are blamed, the insurance companies won't fund treatment because they think it's a choice. It's held us back for decades."
People with anorexia have a distorted body image and refuse to maintain a minimally acceptable body weight. Bulik said anorexics are about 10 times more likely to die in a given period of time than peers the same age.
..."Other links on this story, including the abstract:
Abstract:http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/63/3/305Anorexia is a real disease:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/healthmain.html?in_article_id=363643&in_page_id=1774Past pieces regarding genetics and anorexia...
A genetic link to anorexia:http://www.apa.org/monitor/mar02/genetic.htmlAnorexia 'has genetic basis':http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1575523.stmResearcher Says Risk Factors For Anorexia Nervosa Have Genetic Basis:http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/51576.htmOngoing studies via UPitt:http://www.wpic.pitt.edu/research/pfanbn/Fighting Anorexia: No One To Blame:http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10219756/site/newsweek/
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