Milestones Celebrates 17 Years Treating Eating Disorders

Cooper City, FL, April 14, 2016 --(PR.com)-- In March of this year, Milestones in Recovery celebrated 17 years treating individuals suffering from eating disorders. In 1999, Marty Lerner, PhD and Jay Held decided there was a crucial component missing from existing eating disorder programs, namely the addiction factor.

Unlike most treatment programs, Milestones addresses both the emotional issues and "addictive" elements characteristic of most eating disorders. The belief is that an eating disorder often results in a loss of control with one's relationship with food and/or "dieting." Whether resulting in a pattern of compulsive overeating, repeated episodes of binge eating followed by purging or periods of dieting - or attempts to compensate for over eating by any number of measures, that describe this eating pattern as "food addiction." Yet for others, the compulsion to restrict food intake and avoid weight gain to the point of jeopardizing one's health is, but another form of addiction, namely anorexia. One common thread among all eating disorders, regardless of form appears to be their similarity to other forms of addiction. “The availability of highly processed foods, which include highly processed sweet and high-caloric junk food, creates an addictive relationship for many individuals”, said Marty Lerner, PhD. “The problem is when abused this results in a certain tolerance, identical to drug tolerance, meaning the need for more of the substance, in this case certain foods, are needed to gain the same reward or effect.” “Milestones’ clients learn how to shop, prepare and eat meals within a “clean” food plan, removing the addictive foods that trigger disordered eating behaviors.”

Milestones offers residential, as well as, intensive outpatient treatment for adult men and women. The program offered at Milestones is comprised of two primary components, making the treatment experience unique among most programs. In addition to employing the most current evidence based therapies for treating an eating disorder, the primary mission is to provide residents the ability to take home that which they practiced during their stay.

For more information about Milestones or to schedule an assessment to see if the program is appropriate for you or a loved one contact Jay Held, at 800 347-2364. Milestones in Recovery is located in Cooper City, FL.