An Investigation Of The Aetiology Of Eating Disorders: Interactions Between Genes And Environmental Risk Factors.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$225,000.00
Summary
Eating disorders, along with substance abuse, carry the highest risk of premature death, from both natural and unnatural causes, out of 27 mental disorder categories. Eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder, affect about 6% of Australian women. Despite increased levels of research into the aetiology of eating disorders over the last 20 years, little knowledge exists as to which risk factors cause women to attempt weight loss to the point of increa ....Eating disorders, along with substance abuse, carry the highest risk of premature death, from both natural and unnatural causes, out of 27 mental disorder categories. Eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder, affect about 6% of Australian women. Despite increased levels of research into the aetiology of eating disorders over the last 20 years, little knowledge exists as to which risk factors cause women to attempt weight loss to the point of increasing their risk of premature mortality. A review of twin studies in eating disorders concludes that there is increasing evidence to suggest that genetic factors play a role in the development of eating disorders. In addition, a recent series of studies, examining risk factors before the age of eating disorder onset, have found the following events to specifically predict the development of an eating disorder as opposed to another psychiatric condition: negative self-evaluation, parental alcoholism, low parental contact and high parental expectations, critical comments about weight, shape or eating during childhood, and childhood obesity. To date, no studies have attempted to integrate the findings from twin studies with the findings from early risk factor studies. Specifically, the ways in which genes interact with the environment to increase the chances of genetic vulnerability to an eating disorder being expressed have not been examined. The proposed project seeks to investigate precisely these interactions between genes and the environment, by examining a large number of female twins, aged 29-37. An enhanced understanding of how genes interact with the environment to either increase the chances that a woman will develop an eating disorder, or alternatively to protect a woman from developing an eating disorder, will benefit our understanding of how to target prevention and treatment strategies.Read moreRead less
A Novel Approach For The Treatment Of Obesity: Examining The Potential Of Addiction Therapeutics
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$765,935.00
Summary
Difficulty in managing food intake, especially highly palatable food, can result in obesity and the health liabilities associated with being overweight. In its extreme, the difficulty reducing food intake resembles an addictive disorder. We have compelling preliminary data which show deficits in the brain associated with addiction are also found in diet-induced obesity. Therefore strategies used to treat addiction can potentially be used to treat obesity.
Optimising Benefits And Minimising Potential Harms Of Obesity Treatments
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$707,370.00
Summary
This work aims to find safe and more effective obesity treatments for the over 2.1 billion people worldwide with overweight or obesity. Severely energy restricted diets are currently the most effective dietary obesity treatment, but these are underutilized due to concerns about potential harms. This work will investigate using severe diets intermittently rather than continuously, as a means of enhancing their benefits of long-term weight/fat loss while also reducing potential harmful effects.
An inability to resist a temptation or repeated failures of self-regulation can lead to 'impulsive' and 'compulsive' behaviours that relate to a host of personal and social problems (eg., excessive eating, gambling, and substance use). Despite this, very little research has studied the neural and psychological underpinnings of these behaviours. My research will take advantage of recent innovations and approaches to fill this void and have implications for diagnosis and treatment.
Self-help And Guided Self-help For Bulimia Nervosa In Primary Care: A Randomised Control Trial.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$206,113.00
Summary
Bulimia nervosa (BN) is a major health problem in Australian women with an estimated prevalence of 1.5%. It is frequently invisible, however as women with BN are often self-blaming, ashamed and reluctant to seek specialist help. Therapist led cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for BN, while effective, is expensive and frequently difficult to access. This research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of two accessible and promising treatments: CBT self-help alone and guided CBT self-help treatment ....Bulimia nervosa (BN) is a major health problem in Australian women with an estimated prevalence of 1.5%. It is frequently invisible, however as women with BN are often self-blaming, ashamed and reluctant to seek specialist help. Therapist led cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for BN, while effective, is expensive and frequently difficult to access. This research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of two accessible and promising treatments: CBT self-help alone and guided CBT self-help treatment conducted in primary care in which the patient receives regular guidance from a general practitioner (GP). Women with BN from the community will be randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions: self-help alone, guided self-help or delayed treatment control and symptoms assessed before and after treatment. Patient characteristics associated with improvement will be examined. We anticipate patients in guided self-help will show greatest improvement, then those in the self-help alone treatment. This information will be extremely valuable in both Australia and internationally for a number of reasons. It is ethically inappropriate to recommend any treatment before it has been shown to be effective and a careful design such as the one proposed is the best way to determine treatment effectiveness. In addition, a treatment delivered in primary care is likely to be one of the most accessible within Australia?s health care system in which specialist services tend to be centralised. Further, it is essential to know which patients are likely to benefit from less resource intensive interventions. Finally, if GPs have at their disposal an effective, evidence based treatment for BN, they would be in an ideal position for secondary prevention. They are likely under these circumstances to be more alert to the symptoms of eating disorders and confident in their ability to manage them. If successful, this research will result in more widespread treatment of this disturbing disorder.Read moreRead less
Personalising The Delivery Of E-mental Health Interventions For Eating Disorders
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$632,429.00
Summary
This Investigator Grant aims to evaluate the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of an eHealth prevention and treatment program using a stepped-care approach. Findings are expected to show that eating disorders can be effectively and efficiently treated and prevented through low intensity, cheap, and widely available digital interventions, and by doing so it will directly address the unmet needs of people with or at risk for an eating disorder in a practical, scalable, and cost-effective manner.
Regulatory Strategies To Promote Healthier Australian Diets
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$645,205.00
Summary
Unhealthy diets are a leading cause of ill health. In contrast to our global leadership in tobacco control, Australia remains slow to use law as a tool to support healthy eating. This project will generate new insights on features of effective food policies to target excess sugar consumption. Using an innovative fusion of law and science, its findings will inform and accelerate current proposals to improve food labelling and tax sugary drinks to promote healthier Australian diets.