At the ILCA Conference in San Diego on August 16, 2007 Dr. Patricia
McVeagh of Artarmon, Australia, gave a very interesting talk on
"Challenges and Risks of Mothers with Eating Disorders." It is a
very complicated issue, and mothers with eating disorders can exhibit
a wide range of symptoms. Effects on the nursing baby can also vary.
The outline for this talk is on pages 104 - 107 of the conference
syllabus. Each person attending the conference received a CD as well
as a syllabus, and the outlines were at one time on the ILCA web site
area available to members. I can't find the outlines there now.
Perhaps you can find someone who attended the conference to share the
information with you. There was a bib for this talk with 40
references on it.
One person from the audience in the question period described a
toddler who was starting to imitate his mother's habit of vomiting
after meals, and Dr. McVeagh noted that this is a not-uncommon,
learned behavior.
One of the most important points in working with these families is to
be aware of the "splitting mechanism" that is often a major part of
eating disorders. This leads to pitting one health care professional
against another. We have to be careful not to be drawn into this
behavior, so open, clear communication with all involved in helping
the family must be a focus. Often a multidisciplinary team is
involved in treatment. It's helpful to gain the mother's confidence
and trust before suggesting the possibility of an eating disorder.
Dr. McVeagh suggested considering "a possible eating disorder in a
mother who:
1. Is very anxious about her weight or shape
2. Has an inappropriate view of a healthy weight for her height or
weight gain in pregnancy
3. Has a BMI under 19
4. Failed to gain weight at two consecutive prenatal visits
5. Has a history of periods of amenorrhea, infertility, previous
still birth, premature delivery or past infant feeding problems
6. Has poor circulation; cold or purple fingers
7. Has a history of dental caries (due to frequent vomiting)"
Mothers with bulemia may actually be a normal weight, but can have
electrolyte imbalances.
An interesting point for today is that these mothers may use the
internet to access discussion groups and web sites where eating
disorders become competitive - each trying to outdo the others in
losing the most weight.
Dr. McVeagh is a Clinical Lecturer in infant nutrition at the
University of New South Wales and Sydney University, and a
pediatrician who runs an eating disorder program.
Anne Altshuler, RN, MS, IBCLC, LLLL
Madison, WI
***********************************************
Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
Mail all commands to [log in to unmask]
To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or [log in to unmask])
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet or ([log in to unmask])
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
|