For a female client with anorexia nervosa, nurse Rose plans to include parents in rapy sessions along with client. What fact should nurse remember to be typical of parents of clients with anorexia nervosa?

Correct Answer: A. They tend to overprotect their children.

Clients with anorexia nervosa typically come from a family with parents who are controlling and overprotective. These clients use eating to gain control of an aspect of their lives. Similarly, issues like anxiety, depression, and addiction can also run in families, and have also been found to increase the chances that a person will develop an eating disorder. Many people with anorexia report that, as children, they always followed the rules and felt there was one “right way” to do things.

• Option B: Substance abuse and eating disorders frequently co-occur, with up to 50% of individuals with eating disorders who abuse alcohol or illicit drugs, a rate five times higher than the general population. Substance abuse problems may begin before or during an eating disorder, or even after recovery. Those struggling with co-occurring substance use and disordered eating should speak with a trained professional who can understand, diagnose, and treat both substance use disorders and eating disorders.
• Option C: Loneliness and isolation are some of the hallmarks of anorexia; many with the disorder report having fewer friends and social activities, and less social support. Whether this is an independent risk factor or linked to other potential causes (such as social anxiety) isn’t clear.
• Option D: Eating disorders are complex and affect all kinds of people. Risk factors for all eating disorders involve a range of biological, psychological, and sociocultural issues. These factors may interact differently in different people, so two people with the same eating disorder can have very diverse perspectives, experiences, and symptoms. Still, researchers have found broad similarities in understanding some of the major risks for developing eating disorders.