HJNO Jan/Feb 2023

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS  I  JAN / FEB 2023 43 and American Psychological Association following a diagnosis of an eating disorder such as anorexia nervosa. FBT is delivered in an outpatient setting with families sup- ported by trained professionals. FBT is a treatment that involves the whole family in working together to help their child’s eat- ing disorder. In FBT, families participate in regular sessions with a therapist. Parents are em- powered to be partners in treatment, and treatment is collaborative. FBT provides a high level of care while allowing families to continue their day-to-day lives with mini- mal disruption. Through initially prioritiz- ing weight restoration and medical safety, the medical team helps ensure families re- main at home during recovery instead of in a hospital or residential setting. FBT re- quires active participation by parents and empowers parents as agents of change. With any signs of an eating or feeding disorder, parents or caregivers should talk to the child’s healthcare provider about treatment. For more information about the Eating and Feeding Disorder Center, visit chnola.org or call 504.896.9827. n Amy Henke,PsyD, is a licensed clinical psychologist at Children’s Hospital NewOrleans. She earned a doc- toral degree in clinical psychology fromNova South- eastern University with a specialization in child and family psychology. She completed an internship at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in infant and child psychology,followed by post-doctoral fellowship at Children’s Hospital New Orleans in pe- diatric health psychology.Withmore than 10 years of experience,Henke values the opportunity to provide specialty psychological services and improve access to psychological care for children and families across the gulf coast. Amy Henke, PsyD Pediatric Psychologist Children’s Hospital New Orleans havioral intervention. While under the care of the team, medical monitoring for safety is provided, and the team is focused on sup- porting and empowering the family as they support their child’s recovery. UNDERSTANDING EATING DISORDERS IN KIDS Eating disorders are marked by a vari- ety of emotional, physical, and behavioral changes and, if untreated, can be serious and sometimes fatal. Throughout the U.S, there has been a notable rise in eating dis- orders over the last few years, particularly among adolescents, which is themost com- mon age of onset. Additionally, feeding dis- orders are identified when a child does not consume adequate food, liquid, or a variety of foods to gain weight and grow normally. SIGNS OF EATING DISORDERS IN CHILDREN AND TEENS An eating disorder is an eating problem that strongly focuses on weight and ap- pearance. It causes abnormal eating pat- terns and changes in other behavior. Signs to look for might include: • Eating very large or very small amounts of food. • Throwing up or purging food after eating. • Exercising a lot. • Abusing certain medicines like di- uretics and laxatives. • Not wanting to eat with family or friends. • Going to the bathroom often after meals. • Rapid weight gain or loss and other signs. • Increasing interest in dieting, “clean” eating, and social media focused on eating or body image. • Unnecessary weight loss due to changes in typical eating patterns such as vegetarian or vegan diets. SIGNS OF FEEDING DISORDERS IN BABIES AND CHILDREN Feeding disorders include problems with sucking, eating from a spoon, chew- ing, or drinking from a cup. Feeding prob- lems often involve: • Arching their back or stiffening when feeding. • Crying or fussiness when feeding. • Falling asleep when feeding. • Having problems breastfeeding. • Trouble breathing while eating and drinking. • Refusing to eat or drink or taking a long time to eat. • Eating only certain textures. • Having problems chewing. • Coughing or gagging during meals. • Not gaining weight or growing, among other signs. FAMILY-BASED TREATMENT Family-based treatment (FBT) is consid- ered the first-line treatment recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics