Posts by edgi@otago.ac.nz

In May 2023, our Professor Martin Kennedy presented an 8 minute talk on using genetics to understand eating disorders. This talk was inspired by our work with EDGI and prior research. Martin explains that eating disorders are damaging, very poorly understood, and difficult to treat. They can also be strongly driven by genetics. He discusses…

Night eating syndrome (NES) was formally recognised as an eating disorder nine years ago, and is characterised by delayed patterns of food intake. More specifically, people affected by NES typically don’t feel like eating earlier in the day, but often eat excessively after dinner (perhaps a quarter of their daily intake) and then regularly wake…

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) starts early in life. Common symptoms include struggling to focus on tasks, making mistakes due to inattention, being over-active and fidgety, and being impulsive – interrupting conversations or acting without thinking. Many people are like this sometimes, but for people with ADHD, the symptoms are persistent and interfere significantly with…

Australian and UK researchers (1) have recently reported on the strikingly low funding provided for eating disorders research.   Much more research is needed to address fundamental questions about eating disorders. We still know little about the basic biology, susceptibility of eating disorders, or how best to care for those with eating disorders. However, we do know that eating disorders are serious conditions with significant impacts for…

There is mounting information to show that more people are experiencing disordered eating, especially in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our response to the pandemic has created an space for eating disorders to emerge or worsen. Because of the pandemic, we are likely to experience increased negative feelings and changes in the way we socialise and think1, which can lead to disordered eating for many people.   An increase in eating disorder referrals has been seen around the world since the emergence of of COVID-19. Within the United States and the Netherlands, people with eating disorders reported a worsening…

Well here we are again NZ, in level 4 lockdown. We know it can be extremely challenging for people with eating disorders during COVID lockdown. Regardless of the eating disorder, a lockdown seems to provide triggers and an environment that are especially taxing. We know from research done overseas that factors like reduced stock at supermarkets can…

Though often in the news, eating disorders are poorly understood. When thinking about eating disorders, people usually think of anorexia nervosa or sometimes bulimia nervosa, but rarely about the most prevalent eating disorder, binge-eating disorder (BED). In fact, many people have BED, but are unaware that they have a common and treatable condition. People affected…