Janet Treasure (born 1952), OBE PhD FRCP FRCPsych, is a British

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

, who specialises in research and treatment of

eating disorders An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that negatively affect a person's physical or mental health. Only one eating disorder can be diagnosed at a given time. Types of eating disorders include binge eating ...

. She is currently the Director of the Eating Disorder Unit and Professor of Psychiatry at the

Institute of Psychiatry The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN) is a research institution dedicated to discovering what causes mental illness and diseases of the brain. In addition, its aim is to help identify new treatments for them and ways ...

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

. In early-2013, she was awarded

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) for Services to People with Eating Disorders.

Academic career

Treasure began her medical and academic careers at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

in 1970, gaining her Bachelor of Science in

Physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

(BSc; 1st Class) in 1973, her doctorate in Physiology (PhD) in 1975 and her

Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

Bachelor of Surgery Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

(MB, BS) in 1978. She then joined the

Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

(MRCP) in 1980, and the

Royal College of Psychiatrists The Royal College of Psychiatrists is the main professional organisation of psychiatrists in the United Kingdom, and is responsible for representing psychiatrists, for psychiatric research and for providing public information about mental health ...

(MRCPsych) in 1984. In 1995 she was awarded a fellowship of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (FRCPsych), and in 1999 a fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians (FRCP).

Employment history

Janet became a Medical Research Council (MRC) training fellow at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, in 1984. Three years later in 1987 she became a lecturer in Psychiatry, and in 1989 she was made senior lecturer jointly with KCL and the

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, also known as SLaM, is an NHS foundation trust based in London, England, which specialises in mental health. It comprises four psychiatric hospitals (Bethlem Royal Hospital, Lambeth Hospital and t ...

(SLaM). She was awarded a professorship in Psychiatry at KCL in 2000, which she continues to hold today, alongside her position as director of the Eating Disorder Unit in SLaM.

Other positions held

Treasure holds, or has held, the following posts: * Chief medical advisor for Beat, the UK’s primary eating disorder charity * Patron of the Sheffield Eating Disorders Association * Fellow of Academy of Eating Disorders * Former chair for the physical treatment section of the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) Guideline Committee * Scientific Committee Member NEVER GIVE UP no-profit association for beating Eating Disorders www.never-give-up.it

Research background

Treasure is a specialist in the treatment of eating disorders, having made great headway in both research and treatment, and publishing around 300 peer-reviewed research articles. Her research mainly focusses on the relationship between disorder behaviour and the brain, with the overall aim of developing new treatments. This work has been carried out with patient input, often inspired by patients and their families, whilst also working with various international teams. Her current research unit is investigating and developing all aspects of eating disorders treatment, biology, and clinical problems. She has previously been a co-coordinator of a multicentre European-wide study that examined the genetic and environmental factors associated with the management of eating disorders, and was also vice-chairman of a European project examining the effectiveness of treatment of eating disorders in over 20 countries.

Diabetes research

Treasure has also been very involved in

cognitive behavioural therapy Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psycho-social intervention that aims to reduce symptoms of various mental health conditions, primarily depression and anxiety disorders. CBT focuses on challenging and changing cognitive distortions (su ...

(CBT) and motivational interviewing treatment trials for patients with

type 1 diabetes Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is an autoimmune disease that originates when cells that make insulin (beta cells) are destroyed by the immune system. Insulin is a hormone required for the cells to use blood sugar for ...

Publications

Books

Treasure is the author and editor of several textbooks on eating disorders: ''Neurobiology in the Treatment of Eating Disorders'', Ed Hoek K, Treasure J, Katzman M (1997) and ''Handbook on Eating Disorders'', Szmukler G, Dare C & Treasure (1995) (edition 1 &2) Wiley and, Owen, Treasure & Collier (2001) ''Animal Models of Eating behaviour and body composition'', Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands. She has also written numerous self-help books for patients with eating disorders, including ''Getting better bite by bite'' for patients with bulimia nervosa and ''Anorexia nervosa; a survival guide for families, friends and sufferers'' for parents, teachers and patients about anorexia nervosa.

Journal articles

Treasure is the author of around 300 peer-reviewed journal articles.

Honours and awards

In 1984, Treasure was awarded the Gaskell medal from the Royal College of Psychiatrists. In 2004 she was honoured to be awarded the Academy for Eating Disorders (AED) Leadership Award in Research, which honours individuals who have developed new knowledge regarding eating disorders through research over the course of 10 years or more, with a significant and measurable impact on the field. This must have been done either by making strides in the development of the understanding of eating disorder aetiologies, by developing treatments or developing new lines of research. This is an internationally acknowledged and respected award. In 2007, the national eating disorder charity Beat awarded Professor Treasure the Eating Disorders National Award.

References

External links

Interview with Student BMJ

{{DEFAULTSORT:Treasure, Janet 1952 births Living people British psychiatrists Academics of King's College London Officers of the Order of the British Empire British women academics Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Fellows of the Royal College of Psychiatrists Alumni of the University of London British women psychiatrists