Breathing in this method works by physically preventing the abdominal contractions required to expel stomach contents. Supportive therapy and diaphragmatic breathing has shown to cause improvement in 56% of cases, and total cessation of symptoms in an additional 30% in one study of 54 adolescent patients who were followed up 10 months after initial treatments. Patients who successfully use the technique often notice an immediate change in health for the better. Individuals who have had bulimia or who intentionally induced vomiting in the past have a reduced chance for improvement due to the reinforced behavior. The technique is not used with infants or young children due to the complex timing and concentration required for it to be successful. Most infants grow out of the disorder within a year or with aversive training. Epidemiology
Rumination disorder was initially documented
as affecting newborns,
infants, children
and individuals with mental and functional disabilities (cognitively disabled). It has since been recognized to occur in both males and females of all ages and cognitive abilities.Among cognitively disabled people, it is described with almost equal prevalence among infants (6–10% of the population) and institutionalized adults (8–10%). In infants, it typically occurs within the first 3–12 months of age.The occurrence of rumination syndrome within the general population has not been defined. Rumination is sometimes described as rare, but has also been described as not rare, but rather rarely recognized. The disorder has a female predominance.
Although still considered a disorder of infancy and cognitive disability at that time, the difference in presentation between infants and adults was well established.Studies of rumination in otherwise healthy adults became decreasingly rare starting in the 1900s, and the majority of published reports analyzing the syndrome in mentally healthy patients appeared thereafter. At first, adult rumination was described and treated as a benign condition. It is now described as otherwise. While the base of patients to examine has gradually increased as more and more people come forward with their symptoms, awareness of the condition by the medical community and the general public is still limited. In other animals
The chewing of cud by animals such as cows, goats, and giraffes is considered normal behavior. These animals are known as ruminants. Such behavior, though termed rumination, is not related to human rumination syndrome, but is ordinary. Involuntary rumination, similar to what is seen in humans, has been described in gorillas and other primates. Macropods such as kangaroos also regurgitate, re-masticate, and re-swallow food, but these behaviors are not essential to their normal digestive process, are not observed as predictably as the ruminants, and hence were termed "merycism" in contrast with "true rumination". See also
Professional regurgitator

References
External links

Pediatrics - Rumination Syndrome - The Mayo Clinic. Website provides an overview of the effect of the disorder on children. Rumination disorder - Web MD. Provides a general overview of the disease.