Eating Disorders

...ba href=/eating disorder/a/b characterized by significant weight loss and self-starvation.

Evidence shows that anorexia can run in families.

"Recent studies have found that those with anorexic relatives are much more likely to develop the condition themselves and particularly if they are identical twins," Mary Anne Knapp, clinical social worker at the Center for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), said.

"But at the same time, there are also people who develop the disorder who are the first person in their family to struggle with the condition." Richard Levine, professor of pediatric psychiatry and chief of the adolescent and ba href=/eating disorder/a/b division at the Hershey Medical Center, said finding out if someone has a predisposition to anorexia is very complex.

"It's not simple," he said.

"It's not just one gene or one chromosome." In the studies, patients with anorexia or bulimia have their genes compared with the control group's genes - those without the diseases, Levine said.

"This is a linkage study," he said.

"You look at the studies in families with more than one member who has anorexia and compare the genes." The brain chemical serotonin is also linked to anorexia, Levine said.

Serotonin is a transmitter in the nervous system and is related to feelings.

"The genes in [the nervous system] might make one more susceptible [to anorexia]," Levine said.

Also, serotonin is linked to other diseases that are a risk to developing anorexia, Knapp said.

"Other risk factors include family...

Read more...