With thanks to University of Bath
Researchers at the University of Bath and Great Ormond
Street Hospital have found that school children
who show tendencies towards eating disorders also have traits associated with
autism.
Although traditionally considered
two quite separate conditions, many similarities in characteristics have
previously been found in those with a clinical diagnosis of an eating disorder
and a clinical diagnosis of autism.
For example, female adults with a
diagnosis of anorexia nervosa have been found to score highly on a questionnaire
that measures characteristics associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders
(ASD).
Dr Mark
Brosnan from the University of Bath’s Department of Psychology and his
team set out to identify if the relationship between eating disorders and ASD
existed in a younger, non-clinical population.
The team recruited 132 school
children (61 boys, 71 girls) to take part in the study, aged 11 to 14 years, an
important age for the onset of eating-related issues.
Dieting behaviours and weight
concerns are tentatively considered to be variable risk factors for the
development of eating disorders.
The school children completed
questionnaire-based assessments of eating disorders and ASD, which found a
significant relationship between the two, particularly between eating disorder,
attention to detail and communication skills.
Dr Brosnan said: “The application of
one research area to another may contribute to a better understanding of both
clinical conditions.
“One of the biggest differences
between the disorders is the male domination of ASD diagnoses and the female
domination of eating disorder diagnoses and these comparisons may help us to
understand why this is the case.
“For example, we found that
‘attention to detail’ was consistently the most significant predictor of eating
disorder tendencies, and to a greater degree than gender.
“Poorer social communication skills
were also associated with higher eating disorder tendencies in our study. We
hope that a better understanding of the relationship between these social
cognitive processes and eating disorders may eventually be used clinically to
predict prognosis or course of illness in clinical
patients.”
This research is due to be published
in the British Journal of Clinical Psychology.
Contact information:
For further information please contact Hayley Dodman, Great Ormond Street Hospital press office on 0207 239 3126 or email dodmah@gosh.nhs.uk
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