Abstract
Objective : We conducted a survey examining mothers with eating disorders and their offspring at the National Hospital Organization, Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center. The first report of results from this survey was entitled, "Comparative study of marriage, pregnancy, delivery, and child care between Japanese women with and those without eating disorders". The present report is the second report and concerned with the somatic, psychological, and behavioral disorders of children whose mothers have eating disorders. This report is the first survey conducted in Japan of children whose mothers have eating disorders. Methods : The subjects were 30 children from 20 mothers with eating disorders and 36 children from 20 mothers without eating disorders. The mothers of the children in both groups underwent semi-structured interviews conducted by the authors regarding their children's developmental problems. The semi-structured interview form was prepared for the survey and included 42 items to clarify the health problems of the children. Results: During their infancy, the children of the mothers with eating disorders had significantly more developmental difficulties, such as an abnormal birth, developmental retardation, and hospitalization for illnesses, than the children of mothers without eating disorders (47.6% vs. 16.7%). The subjects had significantly more episodes of enuresis (42.9% vs. 10.0%) and experiences of being abused than the control group (26.7% vs. 0%). Among the children of the mothers with eating disorders, children whose mothers had smoked during pregnancy had lower birth weights than the children whose mothers had not smoked. Furthermore, the children whose mothers had experienced postnatal depression had more experiences of being abused than the children whose mothers did not experience postnatal depression. One girl had brain damage whose mother had fallen severe binge eating and self-induced vomiting during her pregnancy. Conclusion : This study shows that children whose mothers have eating disorders require careful, long-term support.
