A new study by Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University suggests that the DSM-IV criteria for eating disorders have limited clinical utility. Researchers recommend a broadening of the criteria for bulimia, anorexia and binge eating disorder.

People given a biological and genetics-based explanation for the causes of anorexia nervosa were less likely to blame people with anorexia for their illness than those given a sociocultural explanation, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study found.

Even after more than a year of maintaining a normalized body weight, young women who recovered from anorexia nervosa show vastly different patterns of brain activity compared to similar women without the eating disorder, Walter H. Kaye, M.D., professor of psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and colleagues report in the December issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Providing accurate information and improving knowledge of the illness is the most effective preliminary strategy against eating disorders, according to a study in Early Intervention in Psychiatry published by Wiley Blackwell.

Colonic lipomas have been found in related literature. One extremely rare case was recently reported in the November 14 issue of the World Journal of Gastroenterology because of its maximum diameter of 8.5 cm. The article discussed age and sex factors, clinical and histopathological findings, diagnostic methods and treatment by reviewing the present case and previously available literature.

Italy's advertising watchdog has banned a controversial advertising campaign showing a naked anorexic young woman.

Anorexia nervosa is a disorder with a grim reputation. Even experts say that anorexia is often devastatingly chronic and carries high mortality rates. However, these views are highly biased. A study recently conducted in Finland among young women uncovers a completely different side to anorexia.

Kelli Smith walked into the Philadelphia treatment center, seeking help at last for her anorexia, and was struck by how young other patients seemed.

Gay and bisexual men may be at far higher risk for eating disorders than heterosexual men, according to a study conducted at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. In the first population-based study of its kind, the researchers found that gay and bisexual men have higher rates of eating disorders. The findings are reported in the April 2007 issue of International Journal of Eating Disorders.