Tagged With "early childhood"
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Biomarkers for Diabetes May Differ Based on Childhood Experiences [Diabetes In Control]
MIDUS study looks at individual adverse childhood experiences and their impacts on future diabetes. An adverse childhood experience (ACE) is any experience that produces long-lasting stress in a child’s life and leads to worse overall health, both psychological and physical as an adult. Research has shown that even a single ACE increases the risk of diabetes, but little is known about the mechanism behind this phenomenon or how to prevent its occurrence. Currently the CDC only recommends...
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Childhood Trauma Can Impact Our Gut Bacteria
Scientific links between adversity and gut health. Is there an opportunity for nutrition to play a role? https://www.technologynetworks.com/neuroscience/news/childhood-trauma-can-impact-our-gut-bacteria-317561?fbclid=IwAR08DGFCEftxoJhC7JOZZ4MNvlsOLNYg3TeLV-2i-AykvIhEJgWNfttWqMw
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Conversation with Ijeoma Oluo about body size, relationship to food, and growing up food insecure
A great discussion with writer and activist Ijeoma Oluo among other things: Ijeoma’s relationship with food growing up, including her experience with food insecurity The issues with food access for low-income people Food hoarding as a response to deprivation The impact of sexual assault on our eating behaviors The invisibility of fat bodies and the privileges of thin bodies The myth that weight loss is the cure to all ills Size discrimination Systemic injustice The impact of weight loss...
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Dysfunctional Eating May be Rooted in Early Life Experiences [psychcentral.com]
By Traci Pedersen, PsychCentral, September 20, 2019 Dysfunctional eating habits in overweight and obese adults may be deeply rooted in one’s personality traits due to early life experiences, according to a new study published in the journal Heliyon. As a result, weight loss interventions like surgery and cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) might not be enough to guarantee long-term success. “While the biological and environmental causes of obesity are well known, psychological determinants that...
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Family Resiliency and Childhood Obesity
Abstract Background: Traditional research primarily details child obesity from a risk perspective. Risk factors are disproportionately higher in children raised in poverty, thus negatively influencing the weight status of low-income children. Borrowing from the field of family studies, the concept of family resiliency might provide a unique perspective for discussions regarding childhood obesity, by helping to identify mediating or moderating protective mechanisms that are present within the...
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Food Prescription to Treat (Mental) Illness [NPR]
One man's story of improving his mental and physical health with careful use of nutrition. https://www.wbur.org/commonhealth/2019/06/04/future-of-food-as-medicine?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR00KriXrmSj1Q8Hb0eGYA8mIxwUR4t7AKmOwRcuBencwLfE_hFaIf7Cm_A
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Health at Every Size
Linda Bacon, author of Health of Every Size speaks wisely about health, nutrition, social context, well-being and resilience. She says: optimizing diet is not the answer for good health . The podcast discusses: Her relationship to food in childhood, including her firsthand experiences of pursuing weight loss to gain social acceptance How diets and exercise regimens generally stop yielding weight-loss results after a certain amount of time All the ways in which our bodies fight weight loss...
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How to Make the Benefits of a School Garden Meaningful in a Child's Life (kqed.org)
Amid the litany of education reforms that emphasize innovation and new methods, school gardens stand out as a low-tech change. In an era where kids' lives are more sedentary, and where childhood obesity has risen dramatically, gardens support and encourage healthful eating as a key component of children's physical wellbeing, which can aid their academic and social success, too. And as the consequences of food deserts and poor nutrition on life outcomes become starker, advocates say that...
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Obesity and the Link with Childhood Adversity: An Interview with Mary Giuliani
Most people who struggle with weight and food have probably suspected that trauma in the past plays a role. In this new video, Anna Runkle (the Crappy Childhood Fairy) interviews Mary Giuliani, who explains what we now know about childhood adversity, food and obesity. She shares how she lost 160 pounds (and has kept it off for 15 years), and teaches ways to calm emotions (and the brain) and face the triggers that drive overeating in the first place (READ MORE AND WATCH THE VIDEO HERE).
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Parent Handouts updated and available In Dari, English & Spanish
The updated parent handouts are now available in Spanish as well as English and Dari. Here's the blog post with links to all three versions of each flyer. All versions of the Understanding ACEs and Parenting to Prevent & Heal ACEs parent handouts can be downloaded, distributed, and used freely. Both flyers were made with generous support from Family Hui, a Program of Lead for Tomorrow, who is responsible for making the Spanish and Dari translations available. These are updates of the...
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School Lunch at 9am?
While we know that the national school lunch program is an essential part of students functioning, wellbeing, and achievement, the reality is that many schools serve lunch before 11 and even as early as 9 am (shout out to the 2 local Junior Highs in my childhood neighborhood in Queens, NY). Why this is nuts is a no brainer but as one student puts it: “It is way too early. People that have lunch periods at that time get hungry later on in the day which decreases our focus in classes,” says...
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Self-control and obesity: Gender matters in children [medicalxpress.com]
A toddler's self-regulation—the ability to change behavior in different social situations—may predict whether he or she will be obese come kindergarten, but the connection appears to be much different for girls than for boys. Self-regulation is something all children must develop, and poorer self-control in childhood is associated with worse adult health, economic and social outcomes. However, a new study from The Ohio State University found that more self-regulation may not necessarily...
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Study Analyzes Adolescents' Reactions to Weight-related Terms Used by their Parents
Conversations about weight can be particularly challenging for parents with adolescent kids, and insight into the characteristics of parent-adolescent communication about body weight is limited. Published in Childhood Obesity, this study from the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity interviewed 148 adolescents enrolled in a weight loss camp, asking them what words their parents typically use to talk about their weight, how those words make them feel, and what words they would most want...
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The Healing:One Woman's Journey from Poverty to Inner Riches
Saeeda Hafiz, author of The Healing: One Woman's Journey from Poverty to Inner Riches, is a nutrition educator for San Francisco Unified School District, wellness expert, trained cook, and yoga teacher. "On the surface, she was an accomplished professional. Beneath the exterior, however, she suffered from her past and her family challenges, including domestic violence, addiction and poverty that she witnessed throughout her childhood. Through her writing, Saeeda takes us on a journey...
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The Second Assault
"Victims of childhood sexual abuse are far more likely to become obese adults. New research shows that early trauma is so damaging that it can disrupt a person’s entire psychology and metabolism -- Women [have] said they felt more physically imposing when they were bigger. They felt their size helped ward off sexual advances from men." https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/12/sexual-abuse-victims-obesity/420186/
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To Head Off Trauma's Legacy, Start Young
Dr. Roy Wade, from the Cobbs Creek Clinic in West Philadelphia, works on his own screening tool to measure young patients "adversity score" -- indicators of abuse, neglect, signs of poverty, racial discrimination, or bullying. "Wade wants to take action because research suggests that the stress of a tough childhood can raise the risk for later disease, mental illness and addiction." https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/03/09/377569414/to-head-off-traumas-legacy-start-young
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Trauma Affects Your Relationship with Food & Your Body [huffingtonpost.com]
When I was invited to deliver the Keynote Speech on Trauma, Food and the Body at the “9th” Annual SCTC Conference in October I immediately pinpointed my biggest area of trauma, sexual abuse. I wrote about my sexual abuse and how it contributed to me developing an eating disorder in my memoir so this was a no brainer for me. Then I began to create my power point presentation. I decided to revisit the ACES test, (adverse childhood experiences), that not only identifies trauma but also...
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Trauma, Food Addiction, and “Painful” Pounds [HuffingtonPost.com]
For years I’ve listened to women and men recount an agonizing spectrum of verbal, emotional, and physical abuse and trauma that occurred during their childhood, often continuing through adolescence. Most remember that period in their life as the time when they began to overeat. Neglect, abandonment, isolation, and physical harm usually send young people on a desperate search for a way to numb and soothe their pain. Of course, food is the main accessible and primal reward. Laurie has her...
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Trauma in early childhood boosts the risk of teen obesity, study says [philly.com]
Teenagers who have suffered adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) — such as physical or emotional abuse, or having a parent who is incarcerated or addicted to drugs or alcohol — are at greater risk of being overweight or obese, according to a new study . In fact, the study found that the more kinds of adverse experiences children endured, the more likely they would have excessive weight issues by middle school or high school. “This study adds to our understanding of childhood overweight and...
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Welcome to ACES and Nourishment
Adrienne and I are excited to launch this community where anyone can share research, articles, stories and ideas about the connections between food, eating, nutrition, obesity and ACES. As many of you know, the foundational ACES research emerged from an investigation into why participants in an obesity program were dropping out despite initially losing weight. It uncovered how participants' childhood trauma histories affected their weight, risk for metabolic or diet-related disease,...
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What Children understand about Food Insecurity
https://civileats.com/2018/03/26/what-children-understand-about-food-insecurity/
Comment
Re: How to Nourish Your Brain to Improve and Protect It (thebestbrainpossible.com)
Great introduction article to the world of nutritional psychology! I think an important part is also understanding what foods include unhealthy simple carbs ( refined grains, processed foods), sugars ( lactose, malt, carbohydrates), saturated fats, salts, and most importantly and not identified, cholesterol and heme iron. Understanding the importance of protein,fat, and fiber and its forms with the highest nutrient consumption is crucial to the protection of our brains, gut, lungs, and...
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Re: Childhood Trauma Can Impact Our Gut Bacteria
"The children with a history of early caregiving disruptions had distinctly different gut microbiomes from those raised with biological caregivers from birth. Brain scans of all the children also showed that brain activity patterns were correlated with certain bacteria. For example, the children raised by parents had increased gut microbiome diversity, which is linked to the prefrontal cortex, a region of the brain known to help regulate emotions." Food and nutrition is such an important...
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Trauma and Childhood Obesity – LIVE WEBINAR
Trauma and Childhood Obesity – LIVE WEBINAR CLICK HERE TO REGISTER Presented by: Leah N. Owen, MC, LAC Friday, October 2, 2020 8:30am – 4:30pm (Arizona Time) $50.00 Feel confident working with clients with obesity issues Gain resources to share with clients and their families See childhood obesity in a new way Be more effective in assessing clients and addressing the entire person Training Description The session titled Trauma and Childhood Obesity will begin with an overview of childhood...
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Associations between adverse childhood experiences and weight, weight control behaviors and quality of life in Veterans seeking weight management services [sciencedirect.com]
By Robin M. Masheb, Margaret Sala, Alison G. Marsh, et al., Eating Behaviors, January 2021 Abstract Introduction A neglected area of trauma research with Veterans is the study of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). The present study aimed to examine the prevalence of ACEs, and to explore relationships between ACEs and measures of weight, eating behaviors and quality of life in weight loss seeking Veterans. Methods Participants were 191 Veterans [mean age 58.9 (SD = 12.8), mean Body Mass...
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How adverse childhood experiences influence eating disorders
People who have eating disorders frequently have a history of adverse childhood experiences and trauma. Find out what parents need to know
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Miriam Emran
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Jessica Barreca
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Pamela Burrus
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I Grew Up With the Shame of Food Insecurity. Decades Later, I Still Obsess Over What I Eat
"I remember watching my mother stand at the supermarket register, anxiously tugging at her shaggy dark blonde hair, repeatedly tucking it behind an ear. Her green eyes, amplified by thick glasses with rose-tinted plastic frames, scanned the running total. She’d hold an envelope open with one hand and whip out coupons like a blackjack dealer, placing them on each corresponding item to make sure the cashier scanned them together...." https://www.bonappetit.com/story/childhood-food-insecurity
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How ACEs Impact Unconscious Eating
If you suffer from unconscious eating, your ACEs may be impacting your ability to lose weight. Unfortunately, a simple diet or exercise program won’t work because it doesn’t address the WHY behind your unconscious eating patterns in the first place. Learn the link between ACEs and unconcious eating.
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Emotional Eating as a Way to Cope With ACEs
When we engage in emotional eating, we’re using food as our coping mechanism of choice to deal with whatever is inside. After all, it’s easy, accessible, and gives a perceived sense of relief—at least for a little while. The problem is, we never actually deal with the deeper emotion, sometimes rooted in ACEs. It just gets stuffed down and repressed. Then, there's the weight gain...
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This is What Trauma-Informed Hunger Relief Looks Like
CUMAC’s two-story facility in Northern New Jersey has the look and feel of a standard food bank, with a warehouse, a handful of trucks, a client-choice pantry, and even a small garden. In practice, the operation has a mission that goes much further than giving out food or even addressing the root causes of hunger. In the view of Executive Director Mark Dinglasan, problems related to food insecurity go back — way back — to childhood traumas and the harmful impacts they collectively have on...
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Nourishing the Brain Wounded by Childhood Adversity
The right mix of nutrients revitalizes the brain that's been wounded by ACEs. Good nutrition can quickly improve mood and functioning in the present, while improving the potential to rewire disturbing memories imprinted in childhood.
Member
Liz Shaw
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When eating is traumatic and what parents can do to help
Sometimes eating can be traumatic. Traumatic sensations and memories of eating can lead to an eating disorder. Parents must work hard to understand which foods and eating environments are triggering. It also helps to know why they are triggering and learn how to make eating less stressful. Why is eating traumatic? There can be many reasons why food becomes traumatic. A combination of sensory issues, beliefs, and experiences can come together to create a stressful eating environment for some...
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