Did you know that approximately 22% of children and adolescents worldwide show disordered eating? (López-Gil et al., 2023)
Defined by the negative beliefs and behaviours they cause people to have about themselves and their eating, body shape, and weight, eating disorders can have several implications on a person’s physical and mental health, as well as on their development (NICE 2020, Schmidt et al, 2016).
In 2019, it was estimated that 14 million people worldwide experienced eating disorders, including 3 million children and young people (WHO, 2022). In England alone, published NHS figures from 2021 show a large increase in the numbers of hospital admissions for young people due to eating disorders; with almost half of the 24,300 hospital admissions being under the age of 25 (Children’s Commissioner, 2023).
Eating Disorders Awareness Week (24 February – 2 March 2025) is an opportunity to improve awareness that anyone can have an eating disorder and explore the impact that eating disorders can have on children and young people.
This Eating Disorder Awareness Week, we encourage you to explore the FREE learning opportunities available on our website and ACAMH Learn, and to share with your networks.
Resources
ACAMH Learn
- Eating Disorders Explained with Dr. Ellen Fitzsimmons-Craft
- Eating disorders: Basic concepts – Part 1 with Dr. Megen Vo
- Eating disorders: Diagnostic categories – Part 2 with Dr. Megen Vo
- Eating disorders: Medical work-up and outpatient treatment – Part 3 with Dr. Megen Vo
- The what, why, and how of eating disorders genetics research with Helena Davies
- Can boys and men have eating disorders? Delving into prevalence and warning signs with Associate Professor Jason Nagata
- Eating Disorders in Boys and Men: clinical cases with Associate Professor Jason Nagata
- An in depth look at Eating Disorders in boys and men with Associate Professor Jason Nagata
- An in-depth look at eating disorders – In Conversation with Janet Treasure with Janet Linda Treasure
- An in-depth look at OSFED – In Conversation with Kelsey Hagan with Assistant Professor Kelsey Hagan
Podcasts
- NEW PODCAST Dr. Michelle Sader; ARFID and the Brain
- NEW PODCAST Dr. Caitlin Lloyd; Anorexia Nervosa and Neurobiological Mechanisms
- Nature and Nurture in Fussy Eating with Dr. Ali Fildes, Dr. Moritz Herle, Dr. Zeynep Nas, and Dr. Clare Llewellyn
- Binge Eating Disorders: Executive Functioning and Treatment outcomes for Adolescents Undergoing CBT with Dr. Andrea Goldschmidt
Video Abstracts
- Neural Correlates of Children with Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) Symptoms with Dr. Michelle Sader
Articles
- Brain differences in children who show symptoms of avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) with Dr. Michelle Sader
Open Access papers from ACAMH journals
- JCPP Commentary ‘Strengthening executive functioning to disrupt binge eating in youth – a commentary on Goldschmidt et al. (2024)’, (February 2025), Brittany Matheson
- JCPP Original Article ‘Neural correlates of children with avoidant restrictive food intake disorder symptoms: large-scale neuroanatomical analysis of a paediatric population’, (December 2024), Michelle Sader, Holly A. Harris, Gordon D. Waiter, Pauline W. Jansen, Justin H.G. Williams, Tonya White
- JCPP Original Article ‘Nature and nurture in fussy eating from toddlerhood to early adolescence: findings from the Gemini twin cohort’, (September 2024), Zeynep Nas, Moritz Herle, Alice R. Kininmonth, Andrea D. Smith, Rachel Bryant-Waugh, Alison Fildes, Clare H. Llewellyn
- JCPP Original Article ‘Executive functioning and treatment outcome among adolescents undergoing cognitive-behavioral therapy for binge-eating disorder’, (June 2024), Andrea B. Goldschmidt, Kwonho Jeong, Lan Yu, Amy H. Egbert, Ricarda Schmidt, Anja Hilbert
- JCPP Original Article ‘Dynamic functional connectivity in anorexia nervosa: alterations in states of low connectivity and state transitions’, (March 2024), Ilka Boehm, Eva Mennigen, Daniel Geisler, Nico W. Poller, Katrin Gramatke, Vince D. Calhoun, Veit Roessner, Joseph A. King, Stefan Ehrlich
- JCPP Advances Original Article ‘Performing well but not appreciating it – A trait feature of anorexia nervosa’, (September 2023), Tine Schuppli Hjerresen, Mette Bentz, Ayna Baladi Nejad, Estelle Raffin, Kasper Winther Andersen, Oliver James Hulme, Hartwig Roman Siebner, Kerstin Jessica Plessen
