A Louisville researcher will use $11.5 million in grant money from the National Institutes of Health to study how to treat and prevent eating disorders, the University of Louisville announced Wednesday.?

Leading several projects over the next five years on the subject is Cheri Levinson, who is both an associate professor with the university and the director of Louisville’s Eating Anxiety Treatment (EAT) Lab.?

Millions of Americans have eating disorders, which can be connected to suicidality and other health problems. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which can be called or texted, is 988.?

A February study published in the medical journal JAMA reported that, after examining 63,181 participants in 16 countries, 22% of children and adolescents —? roughly 1 in 5 — had disordered eating. Girls, the study found, “were significantly more likely to report disordered eating.”?

“Despite the high prevalence of these conditions, there are few available treatment and prevention options,” Levinson said. “This work not only will create options, but opens this whole possibility for treatments that are personalized based on the individual. Because eating disorders don’t just affect one kind of person and there are a multitude of different factors that can influence them.”

The grant money is divided into several buckets, according to the university. They are:?

• $4 million toward understanding how eating disorders develop in childhood and beyond.?
• $4 million toward identifying patterns of anorexia nervosa — an eating disorder characterized by a fear of gaining weight. This money will also help researchers look at the connection between anorexia and suicide. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which can be called or texted, is 988.?
• Almost $4 million toward treating eating disorders.