Harriet Brown

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Harriet Brown is an American writer, magazine editor, and [1] professor of magazine journalism at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

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Career

She began her magazine career in 1979, with a stint at Popular Science magazine. She was part of the start-up staff for both Wigwag magazine, [2] 1989–1991, and American Girl magazine American Girl, 1992–2000. Her 2006 New York Times article "One Spoonful at a Time" [3] chronicled the descent of her daughter, Anna Young, into anorexia and recovery via family-based treatment, also known as the Maudsley approach. That article became the basis of her 2010 book, Brave Girl Eating. [4] Her experiences inspired Brown to begin working as an advocate for better eating disorders treatment. That same year she helped found Maudsley Parents, a website offering resources to families struggling with anorexia.

As a professor at Newhouse, Brown continues to write, research, and teach about eating disorders and body image as well as other issues, including family estrangement. She writes for The New York Times science section and magazine, O: The Oprah Magazine , Health magazine, and many other publications. In 2011 she won the John F. Murray Prize in Strategic Communication for the Public Good, [5] awarded by the University of Iowa School of Journalism. She currently lives in Syracuse, NY.

Bibliography

Writer

Editor

Related Research Articles

An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that adversely affect a person's physical or mental health. These behaviors include eating either too much or too little. Types of eating disorders include binge eating disorder, where the patient keeps eating large amounts in a short period of time typically while not being hungry; anorexia nervosa, where the person has an intense fear of gaining weight and restricts food or overexercises to manage this fear; bulimia nervosa, where individuals eat a large quantity (binging) then try to rid themselves of the food (purging); pica, where the patient eats non-food items; rumination syndrome, where the patient regurgitates undigested or minimally digested food; avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), where people have a reduced or selective food intake due to some psychological reasons; and a group of other specified feeding or eating disorders. Anxiety disorders, depression and substance abuse are common among people with eating disorders. These disorders do not include obesity. People often experience comorbidity between an eating disorder and OCD. It is estimated 20–60% of patients with an ED have a history of OCD.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bulimia nervosa</span> Type of eating disorder

Bulimia nervosa, also known simply as bulimia, is an eating disorder characterized by binge eating, followed by purging or fasting, as well as excessive concern with body shape and weight. This activity aims to expel the body of calories eaten from the binging phase of the process. Binge eating refers to eating a large amount of food in a short amount of time. Purging refers to the attempts to get rid of the food consumed. This may be done by vomiting or taking laxatives.

Promotion of anorexia is the promotion of behaviors related to the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. It is often referred to simply as pro-ana or ana. The lesser-used term pro-mia refers likewise to bulimia nervosa and is sometimes used interchangeably with pro-ana. Pro-ana groups differ widely in their stances. Most claim that they exist mainly as a non-judgmental environment for anorexics; a place to turn to, to discuss their illness, and to support those who choose to enter recovery. Others deny anorexia nervosa is a mental illness and claim instead that it is a lifestyle choice that should be respected by doctors and family.

Tracey Gold is an American actress and former child star known for her role as Carol Seaver on the 1980s sitcom Growing Pains.

<i>Wigwag</i> (magazine)

Wigwag was an American magazine published from 1988 until 1991.

Anorexia athletica, also referred to as hyper-gymnasia, is an eating disorder characterized by excessive and compulsive exercise. An athlete with sports anorexia tends to overexercise, to give themselves a sense of having control over their body. Most often, people with the disorder tend to feel they have no control over their lives, other than their control of food and exercise. In actuality, they have no control; they cannot stop exercising or regulating food intake without feeling guilty. Generally, once the activity is started, it is difficult to stop, because the person is seen as being addicted to the method adopted.

Christina "Christy" Renée Henrich was an American artistic gymnast. Her death from anorexia nervosa at age 22 led to major reforms in the way women's gymnastics is covered on television and in the news media. She was coached by Al Fong.

Nicola Rachele-Beth Grahame was an English television personality and author. She was a contestant on the seventh series of the reality show Big Brother in 2006, which she finished in fifth place. Following the show, she starred in her own reality series Princess Nikki, and won a National Television Award for Most Popular TV Contender. In 2010, Grahame was runner-up in Ultimate Big Brother, and in 2015, she appeared as a guest housemate on the sixteenth series of Big Brother. In 2016, she competed in the fourth season of Big Brother Canada, finishing in sixth place.

Some claim that the history of anorexia nervosa begins with descriptions of religious fasting dating from the Hellenistic era and continuing into the medieval period. A number of well known historical figures, including Catherine of Siena and Mary, Queen of Scots are believed to have suffered from the condition. Others link the emergence of anorexia to the distinctive presence of an extreme fear of being overweight despite being underweight which emerged in the second half of the 19th century and was first observed by Jean Martin Charcot and other French psychiatrists at the Salpetrière

Ellen West (1888–1921) was a patient of Dr. Ludwig Binswanger who had anorexia nervosa. She became a famous example of Daseinsanalysis who died by suicide at age 33 by poisoning herself.

Wannarexia, or anorexic yearning, is a label applied to someone who claims to have anorexia nervosa, or wishes they did, but does not. These individuals are also called wannarexic, "wanna-be ana" or "anorexic wannabe". The neologism wannarexia is a portmanteau of the latter two terms. It may be used as a pejorative term.

Maudsley family therapy, also known as family-based treatment or Maudsley approach, is a family therapy for the treatment of anorexia nervosa devised by Christopher Dare and colleagues at the Maudsley Hospital in London. A comparison of family to individual therapy was conducted with eighty anorexia patients. The study showed family therapy to be the more effective approach in patients under 18 and within 3 years of the onset of their illness. Subsequent research confirmed the efficacy of family-based treatment for teens with anorexia nervosa. Family-based treatment has been adapted for bulimia nervosa and showed promising results in a randomized controlled trial comparing it to supportive individual therapy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anorexia nervosa</span> Type of eating disorder

Anorexia nervosa (AN), often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin.

Dawn Atkins is an American writer of nonfiction and fiction, as well as an activist and educator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janet Treasure</span> British psychiatrist

Janet Treasure is a British psychiatrist, who specialises in research and treatment of eating disorders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Tchanturia</span> English psychologist and eating disorders researcher

Kate Tchanturia is a British psychologist who is a professor of psychology in eating disorders at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London. She is also Consultant Psychologist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust for the National Eating Disorder Service, and president of the Eating Disorders Research Society. Her main research interests include cultural differences in illness presentations, cognitive profiles in eating disorders, and experimental work in emotion processing and translational research from experimental findings to real clinical practice. Tchanturia has a particular interest in women's mental health and has pioneered the PEACE pathway for autism and eating disorder comorbidity.

The Truth About Size Zero is a TV documentary starring English singer, songwriter, and media personality, Louise Redknapp. Redknapp, concerned about the pressures that women face to be very thin, decided to document what happens when she tries to drop two dress sizes in 30 days. She describes the documentary as her proudest moment away from music. The documentary originally aired on ITV1.

Body image disturbance (BID) is a common symptom in patients with eating disorders and is characterized by an altered perception of one's own body.

<i>Starving in Suburbia</i> 2014 television drama film

Starving in Suburbia is a 2014 American psychological drama made-for-television film about a high school student and competitive dancer, Hannah, who develops a severe eating disorder after becoming obsessed with a pro-ana forum on Tumblr that promotes self-starvation, as Hannah's family are preoccupied by her wrestler brother's upcoming tournament. The film stars Laura Wiggins, Brendan Meyer, Paula Newsome, Marcus Giamatti, Izabella Miko, Emma Dumont and Callie Thorne. It received mixed reviews from critics, while being noted for addressing two phenomenons previously unaddressed by made-for-television films: pro-ana websites, and anorexia among males.

<i>Letting Ana Go</i> 2013 young adult novel

Letting Ana Go is a 2013 book about a girl suffering from anorexia nervosa, published anonymously with no discernible author. The main character, "Ana", is a sophomore student and athletic track star who keeps a strict food diary and finds herself growing increasingly distant from her own family, while her own mother struggles with newfound morbid obesity and separation from her husband. The book calls into question the mental healthcare system in The United States and the financial cost of such care as a barrier to sufferers of issues like eating disorders. Letting Ana Go was published under various imprints of Simon & Schuster in 2013.

References

  1. "Harriet Brown bio page". harrietbrown.com. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
  2. "Wigwag: The Magazine That Lex Built". The New Yorker. January 25, 2016. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  3. Brown, Harriet (November 26, 2006). "One Spoonful at a Time (Published 2006)". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  4. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315626086-31/looking-back-brave-girl-eating-harriet-brown-anna-young
  5. "Harriet Brown Wins First John F. Murray Award | School of Journalism and Mass Communication | College of Liberal Arts and Sciences | The University of Iowa". clas.uiowa.edu. Retrieved January 19, 2021.