2018 Annual Conference: “Future Directions in Eating Disorders”

2018 Annual Conference Agenda

Future Directions in Eating Disorders

October 18, 2018 – Bentley University, LaCava Center, 175 Forest St., Waltham MA

The FREED conference is a premier gathering for professionals, advocates and students who are involved in the prevention, treatment/management and research of eating disorders. This annual meeting is designed to give you an academic experience, as well as provide opportunities to interact and build networks with thought leaders, preeminent researchers and other professionals who share a common interest in advancing the field of eating disorders. The FREED conference is also a great place to reconnect with colleagues and collaborators. This year’s conference will focus on new and emerging concepts in eating disorders and discuss future directions for research, discovery and development in the field.

The agenda will begin with an extraordinary keynote presentation from the world-renowned Walter Kaye, MD, Founder/Executive Director of the Eating Disorders Program at UCSD and Professor in its Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Kaye will open the conference with a thought-provoking presentation entitled, “Is Anorexia Nervosa an Eating Disorder? New insights into reward processing and eating behavior.” This talk will be followed by a series of stimulating presentations given by leading and highly accomplished researchers, on a variety of high-interest topics within the field of eating disorders.

Other topics of interest will cover eating disorders in males, athletes, middle-aged women and diverse populations. The conference will continue by examining the benefits of exposure-based therapy, as well as the links between sleep disorders, anorexia and suicide. Of note, the conference will also highlight the importance of unique opportunities that brain collections can offer in advancing and better understanding the complexities involved in eating disorders. A key feature of the FREED conference this year is our speaker panel: a powerhouse of idea generation and exchange, collegial engagement, and debate.

The FREED conference is more than its speakers and presentations: it is the questions provoked by thought-inducing presentations, lively discussions, collaborations, and impromptu exchanges – whether at an exhibitor’s table or at the post-conference cocktail event. This is your conference! You are the catalyst for change. We invite you to register for our conference and join us to learn, share, inspire and be inspired at our exceptional meeting of brilliant minds.