The FFAS (Foundation for Addiction Education & Research)
The Yale Food addiction scale Rahman (FFAS) is a 24-question questionnaire, based on DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV) criteria for substance addiction disorders, to evaluate food addiction among individuals. The FFAS was developed by the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University.
The FFAS is not intended to diagnose, treat or prevent obesity. It is used to help determine if someone has food addiction, in order to provide assistance to them in making healthy choices. It can also be used to help determine the severity of the disorder, as well as how long it might take to cure an individual’s addiction. Those who have had FFS, but are not yet addicted, can participate in the FFAS, but will have to undergo multiple interviews with therapists and psychologists.
The FFAS was designed to measure several factors related to food addiction, including the extent of an individual’s dependence on food, the amount of alcohol consumed, his or her tolerance level for various substances, and the amount of time a person spends in physical activity related to food. The scale provides a set of questions that must be answered to achieve a score, which reflects a person’s severity of addiction. The scale can be helpful to family members and friends, who may be seeking to monitor an individual’s physical, emotional, and/or behavioral symptoms, especially when they show signs of addiction.
The FFAS can be administered individually, in groups of up to four people, or by an individual psychologist who specializes in treating substance addictions. It can also be administered by clinicians who are trained in conducting research, or by dieticians who specialize in treating the problem of obesity. There are different types of FFAS tools available, including the Short Screening Procedure, the Clinical Assessment of Diagnosis, and the Eating Disorders Interview Schedule.
The FFAS is comprised of five sections: the Yale Food Addiction Scale, the Yale Food Dependence Inventory, the Yale Alcoholism Symptom Scale, the Yale Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, and the Yale Clinical Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Scale. All of these sections cover a range of clinical problems related to substance abuse, including binge eating, compulsive overeating, drug and alcohol abuse, substance withdrawal, and alcohol dependence. and stress and anxiety disorders related to eating.
The FFAS has four possible scoring systems, based upon the amount of time spent on each section. The scores range from zero to four hundred points. The FFAS consists of nine sections, which cover issues about the use of substances, emotional problems, family background, emotional intelligence, and behavior history of emotional problems. The final section of the FFAS is the Clinical Assessment of Diagnosis, which evaluates the individual’s mental health history, including a detailed history of any past mental disorders. Each section contains a maximum of three questions; all of which are part of the scale.
The FFAS measures the degree of dependency on substances, and the amount of time a person spends on each substance. It also measures how much an individual uses, how much he or she consumes, and how much of the substance is used to self medicate a mental disorder. The scale also includes the intensity of the substance’s impact on the individual’s life, the frequency of use, its effects on his or her daily life, and any possible health consequences.
The FFAS covers a wide range of substance abuse disorders, including alcohol and drug abuse. The FFAS can help in the treatment of substance abuse disorders, because it helps to evaluate the degree of dependence to a substance and the amount of time an individual spends on the substance. As well as evaluating a person’s substance abuse, the FFAS can also identify psychological disorders, such as depression or anxiety, that are associated with substance abuse and addiction. When used with other research-based tools, the FFAS can provide more meaningful results for patients.