Introduction to a special issue on eating disorders and gastrointestinal symptoms-The chicken or the egg?

Preliminary data that psychological treatment and baseline anxiety are associated with a decrease in postprandial fullness and early satiation for individuals with bulimia nervosa and related other specified feeding or eating disorder

OBJECTIVE

Gastrointestinal symptoms, particularly postprandial fullness, are frequently reported in eating disorders. Limited data exist evaluating how these symptoms change in response to outpatient psychological treatment. The current study sought to describe the course of postprandial fullness and early satiation across psychological treatment for adults with bulimia nervosa and related other specified feeding or eating disorders and to test if anxiety moderates treatment response.

METHODS

Secondary data analysis was conducted on questionnaire data provided by 30 individuals (80% white, M(SD)age  = 31.43(13.44) years; 90% female) throughout treatment and six-month follow-up in a pilot trial comparing mindfulness and acceptance-based treatment with cognitive-behavioral therapy for bulimia nervosa. Participants completed items from the Rome IV Diagnostic Questionnaire for Adult Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory.

RESULTS

Postprandial fullness and early satiation both significantly decreased over time (ds = 1.23-1.54; p's < .001). Baseline trait anxiety moderated this outcome, such that greater decreases were observed for those with higher baseline anxiety (p = .02).

DISCUSSION

Results extend prior work in inpatient samples by providing preliminary data that postprandial fullness and early satiation decrease with outpatient psychological treatment for bulimia nervosa. Baseline anxiety moderated this effect for postprandial fullness. Future work should replicate findings in a larger sample and test anxiety as a mechanism underlying postprandial fullness in eating disorders.

PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE

The current study found that common gastrointestinal symptoms (postprandial fullness and early satiation) decrease over the course of outpatient psychotherapy for adults with full and subthreshold bulimia nervosa. Postprandial fullness decreased more across time for those high in anxiety.

[Eating disorders - what the gastroenterologist needs to know]

Eating disorders are potentially life-threatening disorders that go along with severe psychiatric and somatic comorbidities. It is expected that the number of patients will dramatically increase in the post COVID-19 pandemic era.Four main eating disorders are mentioned in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM-5) and the International Classification of Diseases 11 (ICD-11): anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), binge eating disorder (BED) und avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID). Many traditional assumptions in eating disorders are currently challenged due to recent research results. The gastroenterologist is usually not the first point of contact for patients with eating disorders. However, he is crucial, especially in the management of gastroenterologic complications of eating disorders.Focus of the overview will be on relevant gastroenterologic aspects and less on the psychiatric treatment. Basics of the most common eating disorders will be repeated, opportunities in diagnosing an eating disorder and the most relevant gastroenterologic complications will be described. Obesity and its management, an entity that often goes along with an eating disorder, is not in the spotlight of the review.

Exploration of interoceptive capabilities in avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder and anorexia nervosa

OBJECTIVE

This proof-of-concept study explores the role of aberrant interoception as a possible mechanism underlying restrictive eating symptoms in avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) compared to anorexia nervosa (AN) and healthy comparisons (HC).

METHOD

We report preliminary normative adolescent interoceptive data in HCs (n = 100) compared to adolescents with ARFID (n = 30) and AN (N = 23). Adolescents (12-18) participated in a one-time virtual visit to assess heartrate guessing accuracy (interoceptive accuracy), correlation between confidence in heartrate guess and accuracy (interoceptive awareness), and self-reported interoception (interoceptive sensibility).

RESULTS

HC adolescents had comparable interoceptive outcomes relative to published adult norms, consistent with existing literature. Data suggest that adolescents with ARFID have poor heartbeat guessing accuracy and experience challenges deciphering interoceptive signals, possibly contributing to symptoms. While adolescents with AN have greater heartbeat guessing accuracy, they cite difficulty trusting body cues, perhaps contributing to their lack of confidence in interoceptive cue detection.

CONCLUSIONS

Preliminary results reflect differences in interoception between the three groups.

Functions of disordered eating behaviors: a qualitative analysis of the lived experience and clinician perspectives

BACKGROUND

One method to improve treatment outcomes for individuals with eating disorders (EDs) may be understanding and targeting individuals' motives for engaging in DE behaviors-or the functions of DE behaviors. The goal of this study was to investigate and categorize the various functions of DE behaviors from the perspectives of adults who engage in DE behaviors and clinicians who treat EDs.

METHODS

Individuals who engage in DE behaviors (n = 16) and clinicians who treat EDs (n = 14) were interviewed, and a thematic analysis was conducted to determine key functions of DE behaviors.

RESULTS

Four main functions of DE behaviors were identified by the authors: (1) alleviating shape, weight, and eating concerns; (2) regulating emotions; (3) regulating one's self-concept; and (4) regulating interpersonal relationships/communicating with others.

CONCLUSIONS

Differences in participant responses, particularly regarding the relevance of alleviating shape and weight concerns as an DE behavior function, highlight the importance of individualized conceptualizations of DE behavior functions for any given client.

The Intersection of Disorders of Gut-Brain Interaction With Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder

High rates of overlap exist between disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBI) and eating disorders, for which common interventions conceptually conflict. There is particularly increasing recognition of eating disorders not centered on shape/weight concerns, specifically avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) in gastroenterology treatment settings. The significant comorbidity between DGBI and ARFID highlights its importance, with 13% to 40% of DGBI patients meeting full criteria for or having clinically significant symptoms of ARFID. Notably, exclusion diets may put some patients at risk for developing ARFID and continued food avoidance may perpetuate preexisting ARFID symptoms. In this review, we introduce the provider and researcher to ARFID and describe the possible risk and maintenance pathways between ARFID and DGBI. As DGBI treatment recommendations may put some patients at risk for developing ARFID, we offer recommendations for practical treatment management including evidence-based diet treatments, treatment risk counseling, and routine diet monitoring. When implemented thoughtfully, DGBI and ARFID treatments can be complementary rather than conflicting.

The emerging science of Glioception: Contribution of glia in sensing, transduction, circuit integration of interoception

Interoception is the process by which the nervous system regulates internal functions to achieve homeostasis. The role of neurons in interoception has received considerable recent attention, but glial cells also contribute. Glial cells can sense and transduce signals including osmotic, chemical, and mechanical status of extracellular milieu. Their ability to dynamically communicate "listening" and "talking" to neurons is necessary to monitor and regulate homeostasis and information integration in the nervous system. This review introduces the concept of "Glioception" and focuses on the process by which glial cells sense, interpret and integrate information about the inner state of the organism. Glial cells are ideally positioned to act as sensors and integrators of diverse interoceptive signals and can trigger regulatory responses via modulation of the activity of neuronal networks, both in physiological and pathological conditions. We believe that understanding and manipulating glioceptive processes and underlying molecular mechanisms provide a key path to develop new therapies for the prevention and alleviation of devastating interoceptive dysfunctions, among which pain is emphasized here with more focused details.

The intersection between eating disorders and gastrointestinal disorders: a narrative review and practical guide

Eating disorders include a spectrum of disordered thinking patterns and behaviours around eating. There is increasing recognition of the bi-directional relationship between eating disorders and gastrointestinal disease. Gastrointestinal symptoms and structural issues might arise from eating disorders, and gastrointestinal disease might be a risk factor for eating disorder development. Cross-sectional research suggests that individuals with eating disorders are disproportionately represented among people seeking care for gastrointestinal symptoms, with avoidant-restrictive food intake disorder in particular garnering attention for high rates among individuals with functional gastrointestinal disorders. This Review aims to describe the research to date on the relationship between gastrointestinal disorders and eating disorders, highlight research gaps, and provide brief, practical guidance for the gastroenterology provider in detecting, potentially preventing, and treating gastrointestinal symptoms in eating disorders.

Gastrointestinal Interoception in Eating Disorders: Charting a New Path

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Abnormal interoception has been consistently observed across eating disorders despite limited inclusion in diagnostic conceptualization. Using the alimentary tract as well as recent developments in interoceptive neuroscience and predictive processing as a guide, the current review summarizes evidence of gastrointestinal interoceptive dysfunction in eating disorders.

RECENT FINDINGS

Eating is a complex process that begins well before and ends well after food consumption. Abnormal prediction and prediction-error signals may occur at any stage, resulting in aberrant gastrointestinal interoception and dysregulated gut sensations in eating disorders. Several interoceptive technologies have recently become available that can be paired with computational modeling and clinical interventions to yield new insights into eating disorder pathophysiology. Illuminating the neurobiology of gastrointestinal interoception in eating disorders requires a new generation of studies combining experimental probes of gut physiology with computational modeling. The application of such techniques within clinical trials frameworks may yield new tools and treatments with transdiagnostic relevance.