Postpartum Eating Disorders V1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A qualitative investigation of the factors influencing the experience and management of eating disorder symptomology during the postpartum period.
IRAS ID
316941
Contact name
Chantelle Ecob
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Manchester
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, 0 days
Research summary
An eating disorder (ED) is a mental health problem where someone has major problems with food, eating and body weight or shape. There are different types of EDs which each involve different symptoms. ED-symptoms may include eating too little, eating too much or purging. EDs can be complex and life-threatening because they negatively affect people’s physical and mental health. It is estimated that that 8% of women and 2% of men have an eating disorder at some point in their life.
Some women’s EDs can improve during pregnancy. One reason for this is because they are aware they need to provide nutrition for their growing baby. This can sometimes continue after giving birth and into the future. However, women often struggle with their ED more after giving birth. The reasons for this are unclear. It is important to understand the reasons that previous ED symptoms can return at this time. This will help health care workers, family and friends learn how to support women in this vulnerable time.
We plan to interview 20 women who have given birth with a current or past ED. We will seek participants from NHS ED services and on social media. Interviews will be online or face-to-face and will last around one hour. Interviews will involve questions about different factors, such as support available at the time and mother-baby bonding. We will also ask more general questions about what was helpful and what made their experience more difficult, for women to discuss what was important to them at the time. The research will be funded by the University of Manchester.
REC name
South Central - Oxford B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/SC/0017
Date of REC Opinion
20 Feb 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion