Family Strain Spurs Symptoms
in Some Bulimic Teens

Family arguments and conflict may trigger cycles of bingeing and purging for some teenage girls with bulimia, a small study suggests.

The implication, researchers say, is that therapy focusing on easing family relations might help bulimic teens who feel there's too much conflict at home.

Bulimia is an eating disorder in which a person falls into addictive cycles of eating large amounts of food, then purging -- vomiting or using laxatives, fasting, or exercising excessively. Eating disorders are complex, and a range of factors, from cultural pressures to be thin to psychological problems like depression, are thought to contribute to them.

For some teens with bulimia, family conflicts may set off symptoms, according to the study's lead author, Dr. Deborah M. Okon of the University of Phoenix.

Okon told Reuters Health that clinicians and researchers have long believed that changing family interactions can help treat eating disorders. "To my knowledge," she said, "this is the first time research found a direct link between conflicts that occur and bulimic symptoms later that day."

Okon and her colleagues report the findings in the December issue of the International Journal of Eating Disorders.

During the study, 20 teenage girls with bulimia reported on instances of family conflict and bulimia symptoms every day for a week. The girls also completed standard questionnaires on family relationships, communication, and conflicts.

The researchers found that family "hassles" often preceded girls' binging and purging-but only among those who felt that their families were full of conflict or that family members avoided discussing emotional issues.

According to Okon, the study suggests that if families can reduce clashes and help bulimic teens discuss feelings instead, that could help prevent cycles of binging and purging. A therapist, she said, could teach such families different ways to interact so that bulimic teens can learn to deal with arguments in a healthier way.

SOURCE: International Journal of Eating Disorders, December 2003.

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