Comorbidity of Alcohol Abuse Disorders and Bulimia

Co-Morbidity of Bulimia Nervosa (Bulimia) and Alcohol Use Disorders (AUD)

By

SL Roos

Table of Contents

1. Introduction 3

2. Frequency of Co-Morbidity between Bulimia and AUD 4

3. Reasons for the Possible Co-Morbidity of Bulimia and AUD 4

3.1. Shared Etiologies 4 3.1.1. Personality traits: 4 3.1.2. Family History 5 3.1.3. Biological Vulnerability 5

3.2. Casual Etiology Group 6 3.2.1. Self Medication 6 3.2.2. Food Deprivation 6 3.2.3. Bulimic Behaviours 6

4. Treatment for Bulimia and AUD 6

4.1. Treatment Approach 6

4.2. Specific Treatment Plan 7

5. Conclusion 8

6. References 9

1. Introduction

“Substance abuse and eating disorders have the highest mortality risks of all mental disorders and half of all clients with eating disorders abuse alcohol or illicit drugs” (Carbaugh & Sias, 2010, p. 125).
Clients with Eating Disorders are already at an increased risk for mortality, so alcohol or drug abuse places additional dangers onto this group. A study by Suzuki, Takeda, and Yoshino (2011) into mortality rates of patients with eating disorders, found the mortality of eating disorder patients with alcoholism were significantly higher than those without.

Eating Disorders (ED) are psychological disorders, characterized by and resulting in severe disturbances in eating behaviors, and can subdivided into Anorexia Nervosa (AN), Bulimia Nervosa (Bulimia), Binge–Eating Disorder (BED), and Eating disorder not otherwise specified (Palme, 2008).

Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is a substance abuse disorder, where the individual’s consumption of alcohol is great enough to damage or adversely affect their daily functioning and/or becomes a prerequisite for normal functioning (Gordon, 2008). AUD are subdivided into alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence disorders (Gordon, 2008).

Research into the co-morbidity of AUD and ED suggests AUD occurs more frequently with Bulimia than Anorexia (Kane. 1999). The National

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