Mobile apps could help fight eating disorders
BULIMIA sufferers may be able to find help through confiding to a smartphone, as a new US study shows the effectiveness of digital cognitive behaviour therapy in treating eating disorders among female college students.
The study, published in Jama Network Open, comprised 4,894 women from 27 American colleges. The students were screened to identify the women more prone to eating disorders, notably bulimia.
Among the young women surveyed, 690 with bulimic disorders agreed to take part in the study: 385 were randomly assigned to cognitive behaviour therapy through a mobile application tailored to the experiment, while the other 305 were assigned to usual care with counselors on campuses.
The first group of participants followed their therapy via the mobile app. They were in charge of their own schedule of 40 sessions of roughly 10 minutes each. They received personalised counsel, with phone calls from coaches at the beginning and the end of their digital therapy. They also received written tips throughout their programme via text messages.
As the experiment went on, the participants from the digital app group noted decreased symptoms, as well as lower levels of symptoms of anxiety and depression linked to the perception of their body.
The study showed that 83% of those who were randomly selected to use the app completed at least some part of the programme, while just 28% of those assigned to usual care reported receiving any treatment at all. The effectiveness of the digital therapy compared to traditional therapy is rooted in its increased flexibility, according to the study authors. They also highlighted the fact that young women may feel more at ease confiding the intimate details of their lives to a smartphone rather than a stranger.
“Many college counseling centers aren’t equipped with clinicians who are trained in treating eating disorders, so we believe digital interventions like this one can dramatically increase access to care,” said first author Ellen E. Fitzsimmons-craft, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. –