Eating disorders are complex psychiatric conditions characterized by severe
disturbances in eating behaviours, distorted body image, and intense psychological
distress. Illnesses including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder
are traditionally evaluated as individual pathologies, but the behaviours that come with
these disorders naturally impact those around them. According to longitudinal data by
Micali et al. (2010), maternal eating psychopathology and the psychiatric distress that
comes with it creates an increased risk for severe feeding difficulties during the first six
months of an infant's life. This displays the impacts of having an eating disorder as a
mother and how it can severely impact a child's development. If a baby is not fed
appropriately during these crucial developmental stages, they may have delayed brain
development, poor weight gain and a weakened immune system. Not only is the eating
disorder a threat to the mothers life, but can greatly impact their infants.
Expanding upon these early infancy risks, large population data from the Norwegian
Mother and Child Cohort Study demonstrates that maternal eating disorders alter what the
child is fed during the transition to solid foods. This study looked at data from over 53,000
mothers. It proved that maternal eating disorders do not just affect how the mother thinks
of their nourishment, but eventually results in a different diet for the baby. Infants of
mothers diagnosed with Bulimia Nervosa are less likely to receive homemade, traditional
foods. So their nourishment relies heavily on commercial jarred baby foods. The study also
looked at mothers who actively or historically had Anorexia Nervosa. These mothers did
not have the tendency to deviate from the structural food categories at the six month mark,
showing that different eating disorders can impact early parenting choices in different
ways. Overall this study demonstrated that eating disorders can impact parenting before a
child even has the ability to talk or understand body image. This was very distinct when
observing a mothers decisions during their infant's initial transition to solid foods.
, It is possible to trace the developmental risks back even further by looking at the biological
starting point. Research from the Swedish Medical Birth Registry reveals that an active
eating disorder during the gestational phase alters the uterine environment (Mantel et al.,
2022). This significantly increases the child’s long-term risk for neurodevelopmental
conditions. Creating a 2.5-fold increase in the risk of developing Attention-Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder and a 4-fold increase in the risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder.
According to this large-scale population data, the severity and the status of the maternal
illness can directly dictate the probability of a neurodevelopmental shift. The study showed
that even mothers who historically had an eating disorder still carry a slight risk.
Suggesting that underlying genetic and epigenetic factors can increase a parent's risk for
eating disorders and a child's risk for neurodevelopmental conditions (Mantel et al., 2022).
Evaluating these perinatal and infancy findings as a whole, makes it very evident
that maternal eating disorder psychopathology does shape early childhood development.
This is due to ingrained cognitive behaviours and beliefs as well as external cultural
pressures. During the process of gestation, fetal growth and the intrauterine environment
is disturbed because of this internal cognitive distress as it causes dietary restriction
leading to compromised weight gain (Mantel et al., 2022). The same psychological
overload is seen in postpartum. Because this overload becomes a cognitive distraction. A
mother is unable to be fully focused on the needs of their infant, this may cause her to
overlook basic hunger and safety cues (Micali et al., 2010). Disorders like bulimia and
binge-eating have a very unpredictable nature, this can lead to a parent relying on easier
sources of food. So when introducing solid foods, they are usually store-bought
convenience food, since they are much less stressful to prepare. In contrast parents with
anorexia do not stray from rigid feeding schedules and nutritional guidelines due to the
disturbances in eating behaviours, distorted body image, and intense psychological
distress. Illnesses including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder
are traditionally evaluated as individual pathologies, but the behaviours that come with
these disorders naturally impact those around them. According to longitudinal data by
Micali et al. (2010), maternal eating psychopathology and the psychiatric distress that
comes with it creates an increased risk for severe feeding difficulties during the first six
months of an infant's life. This displays the impacts of having an eating disorder as a
mother and how it can severely impact a child's development. If a baby is not fed
appropriately during these crucial developmental stages, they may have delayed brain
development, poor weight gain and a weakened immune system. Not only is the eating
disorder a threat to the mothers life, but can greatly impact their infants.
Expanding upon these early infancy risks, large population data from the Norwegian
Mother and Child Cohort Study demonstrates that maternal eating disorders alter what the
child is fed during the transition to solid foods. This study looked at data from over 53,000
mothers. It proved that maternal eating disorders do not just affect how the mother thinks
of their nourishment, but eventually results in a different diet for the baby. Infants of
mothers diagnosed with Bulimia Nervosa are less likely to receive homemade, traditional
foods. So their nourishment relies heavily on commercial jarred baby foods. The study also
looked at mothers who actively or historically had Anorexia Nervosa. These mothers did
not have the tendency to deviate from the structural food categories at the six month mark,
showing that different eating disorders can impact early parenting choices in different
ways. Overall this study demonstrated that eating disorders can impact parenting before a
child even has the ability to talk or understand body image. This was very distinct when
observing a mothers decisions during their infant's initial transition to solid foods.
, It is possible to trace the developmental risks back even further by looking at the biological
starting point. Research from the Swedish Medical Birth Registry reveals that an active
eating disorder during the gestational phase alters the uterine environment (Mantel et al.,
2022). This significantly increases the child’s long-term risk for neurodevelopmental
conditions. Creating a 2.5-fold increase in the risk of developing Attention-Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder and a 4-fold increase in the risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder.
According to this large-scale population data, the severity and the status of the maternal
illness can directly dictate the probability of a neurodevelopmental shift. The study showed
that even mothers who historically had an eating disorder still carry a slight risk.
Suggesting that underlying genetic and epigenetic factors can increase a parent's risk for
eating disorders and a child's risk for neurodevelopmental conditions (Mantel et al., 2022).
Evaluating these perinatal and infancy findings as a whole, makes it very evident
that maternal eating disorder psychopathology does shape early childhood development.
This is due to ingrained cognitive behaviours and beliefs as well as external cultural
pressures. During the process of gestation, fetal growth and the intrauterine environment
is disturbed because of this internal cognitive distress as it causes dietary restriction
leading to compromised weight gain (Mantel et al., 2022). The same psychological
overload is seen in postpartum. Because this overload becomes a cognitive distraction. A
mother is unable to be fully focused on the needs of their infant, this may cause her to
overlook basic hunger and safety cues (Micali et al., 2010). Disorders like bulimia and
binge-eating have a very unpredictable nature, this can lead to a parent relying on easier
sources of food. So when introducing solid foods, they are usually store-bought
convenience food, since they are much less stressful to prepare. In contrast parents with
anorexia do not stray from rigid feeding schedules and nutritional guidelines due to the
