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 her daughter's descent 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. 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, [4] 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 negatively affect a person's physical or mental health. Types of eating disorders include binge eating disorder, where the patient eats a large amount in a short period of time; 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 as simply bulimia, is an eating disorder characterized by binge eating followed by purging or fasting, and 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.

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<i>Wigwag</i> (magazine)

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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

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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 low weight, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin.

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

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<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.

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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. "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.