This article was downloaded by: [Eindhoven Technical University] On: 19 October 2014, At: 09:58 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rcmh20
Eating disorders Lynda Albertyn
a
a
Department of Psychiatry , University of Witwatersrand Medical School , Johannesburg Published online: 15 Nov 2010.
To cite this article: Lynda Albertyn (2010) Eating disorders, Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health, 22:2, 153-154, DOI: 10.2989/17280583.2010.528582 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.2989/17280583.2010.528582
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/ terms-and-conditions
Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2010, 22(2): 153–154 Printed in South Africa — All rights reserved
Copyright © NISC Pty Ltd
JOURNAL OF CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH ISSN 1728–0583 EISSN 1728–0591 DOI: 10.2989/17280583.2010.528582
Book Review Eating disorders
Downloaded by [Eindhoven Technical University] at 09:58 19 October 2014
Christopher Paul Szabo 2009, Reach Publishers, Cape Town, South Africa 155 pages Paperback, ISBN: 978-1092-26164-1, ZAR 120
This accessible book’s purpose is to give ‘the South African perspective on eating disorders within an international framework’. This it succeeds in doing. The book is a useful addition to other textbooks on eating disorders and will be helpful to both undergraduates and registrars. Eating disorder is an area of psychiatry which arouses similar emotions in psychiatrists as do substance use disorders. It is often a condition which is avoided by general psychiatrists. This is partly to do with the lack of clear cut aetiology, course of illness, treatment and muddle concerning the patient’s responsibility for the condition. In this book there are clear descriptions of the aetiology and emergence of eating disorders, outlining the various ‘causes’, from genetics, to cultural factors, to family dynamics, with references to studies done in various parts of the world, including most of the research that has been done in South Africa and other parts of Africa. The various sub-types of eating disorders are also clearly explained and diagnostic controversies explored in relations to current research. The treatment section of the book also gives an easily understood summary of the various choices of medication and therapies which have been found to be helpful. There is no section on the prevention of eating disorders, which would have been a helpful addition to the way forward. Much of the research on eating disorders in South Africa has been done by the author and he discusses his research into attitudes towards eating, dieting and body image found among white and black South African students and the finding of high levels of abnormal attitudes towards eating and body image in black, urban South African school girls. He discusses some of the reasons why this has not been translated into a dramatic rise in admissions to Eating Disorder units. While the author acknowledges that the disorder needs to be recognized as such (by both parents and patients) before young women are brought to the attention of mental health workers, this is not hypothesised as a possible reason for the seeming lack of a rise of eating disorders in young black patients. The discussion on the relationship between culture and eating disorders is interesting. Studies do seem to indicate that culture, and not race, is a more important determinant and mediator of eating disorders and the adoption of Western values, with an emphasis on the value of thinness and appearance, does seem to predispose people to the vulnerability of developing an Eating Disorder. The discussion about the interesting phenomena of dancers, athletes, models and jockeys and whether their abnormal eating habits related to their professions constitute eating disorders was tantalizing and I would have liked greater expansion on the subject. Another interesting area that was not mentioned is the common use of enemas and purges among much of Africa and whether this might not have accounted for some of the pathological attitudes towards eating and purging picked up in research. There was also no mention of ‘Slim disease’ and how HIV/AIDS and wasting due to the illness might have contributed towards attitudes about thinness among Africans. Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health is co-published by NISC (Pty) Ltd and Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
154
Evans
Downloaded by [Eindhoven Technical University] at 09:58 19 October 2014
The author discusses the hypothesis that eating disorders may be a manifestation of distress that in the past might have presented as ‘hysteria’ or neurasthenia, which supports the view that cultural contexts play an important role in psychiatric presentations and diagnoses. It also raises the possibility of very interesting research which could be performed in this area. The end section of the book is mainly about the research instruments used in the author’s research with discussion about the usefulness of the EAT-40 and Eat-26 in different cultural contexts. Eating disorders is an easily readable and comprehensive book that is a very useful addition to the field and will be a help to medical students, paramedical students, psychologists and registrars in giving clear guidelines for the disorder, summarising various studies and clarifying many of the more difficult areas of a complex subject.
Lynda Albertyn President, South African Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (SAACAPAP); Head, Child, Adolescent and Family Unit, Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital; and Principal Specialist Psychiatrist, Department of Psychiatry, University of Witwatersrand Medical School, Johannesburg e-mail: [email protected]
Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rcmh20
Eating disorders Lynda Albertyn
a
a
Department of Psychiatry , University of Witwatersrand Medical School , Johannesburg Published online: 15 Nov 2010.
To cite this article: Lynda Albertyn (2010) Eating disorders, Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health, 22:2, 153-154, DOI: 10.2989/17280583.2010.528582 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.2989/17280583.2010.528582
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/ terms-and-conditions
Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2010, 22(2): 153–154 Printed in South Africa — All rights reserved
Copyright © NISC Pty Ltd
JOURNAL OF CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH ISSN 1728–0583 EISSN 1728–0591 DOI: 10.2989/17280583.2010.528582
Book Review Eating disorders
Downloaded by [Eindhoven Technical University] at 09:58 19 October 2014
Christopher Paul Szabo 2009, Reach Publishers, Cape Town, South Africa 155 pages Paperback, ISBN: 978-1092-26164-1, ZAR 120
This accessible book’s purpose is to give ‘the South African perspective on eating disorders within an international framework’. This it succeeds in doing. The book is a useful addition to other textbooks on eating disorders and will be helpful to both undergraduates and registrars. Eating disorder is an area of psychiatry which arouses similar emotions in psychiatrists as do substance use disorders. It is often a condition which is avoided by general psychiatrists. This is partly to do with the lack of clear cut aetiology, course of illness, treatment and muddle concerning the patient’s responsibility for the condition. In this book there are clear descriptions of the aetiology and emergence of eating disorders, outlining the various ‘causes’, from genetics, to cultural factors, to family dynamics, with references to studies done in various parts of the world, including most of the research that has been done in South Africa and other parts of Africa. The various sub-types of eating disorders are also clearly explained and diagnostic controversies explored in relations to current research. The treatment section of the book also gives an easily understood summary of the various choices of medication and therapies which have been found to be helpful. There is no section on the prevention of eating disorders, which would have been a helpful addition to the way forward. Much of the research on eating disorders in South Africa has been done by the author and he discusses his research into attitudes towards eating, dieting and body image found among white and black South African students and the finding of high levels of abnormal attitudes towards eating and body image in black, urban South African school girls. He discusses some of the reasons why this has not been translated into a dramatic rise in admissions to Eating Disorder units. While the author acknowledges that the disorder needs to be recognized as such (by both parents and patients) before young women are brought to the attention of mental health workers, this is not hypothesised as a possible reason for the seeming lack of a rise of eating disorders in young black patients. The discussion on the relationship between culture and eating disorders is interesting. Studies do seem to indicate that culture, and not race, is a more important determinant and mediator of eating disorders and the adoption of Western values, with an emphasis on the value of thinness and appearance, does seem to predispose people to the vulnerability of developing an Eating Disorder. The discussion about the interesting phenomena of dancers, athletes, models and jockeys and whether their abnormal eating habits related to their professions constitute eating disorders was tantalizing and I would have liked greater expansion on the subject. Another interesting area that was not mentioned is the common use of enemas and purges among much of Africa and whether this might not have accounted for some of the pathological attitudes towards eating and purging picked up in research. There was also no mention of ‘Slim disease’ and how HIV/AIDS and wasting due to the illness might have contributed towards attitudes about thinness among Africans. Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health is co-published by NISC (Pty) Ltd and Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
154
Evans
Downloaded by [Eindhoven Technical University] at 09:58 19 October 2014
The author discusses the hypothesis that eating disorders may be a manifestation of distress that in the past might have presented as ‘hysteria’ or neurasthenia, which supports the view that cultural contexts play an important role in psychiatric presentations and diagnoses. It also raises the possibility of very interesting research which could be performed in this area. The end section of the book is mainly about the research instruments used in the author’s research with discussion about the usefulness of the EAT-40 and Eat-26 in different cultural contexts. Eating disorders is an easily readable and comprehensive book that is a very useful addition to the field and will be a help to medical students, paramedical students, psychologists and registrars in giving clear guidelines for the disorder, summarising various studies and clarifying many of the more difficult areas of a complex subject.
Lynda Albertyn President, South African Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (SAACAPAP); Head, Child, Adolescent and Family Unit, Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital; and Principal Specialist Psychiatrist, Department of Psychiatry, University of Witwatersrand Medical School, Johannesburg e-mail: [email protected]
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