Changing perceptions of eating disorders : from clinical treatment to socio-cultural prevention and interventions

Abstract

Eating disorders are a complex and often difficult-to-treat mental illness. Despite advances in treatment, various data show that the number of cases of this disorder is rising, and that mortality rates are by far the highest of all mental health disorders. Given that disorders can have a profound impact on all body systems and on many areas of socio-economic life, the work of prevention scientists is vital for the field and for the health of the population in general. This prompts reflection on the development of more
effective intervention strategies from a socio-cultural as well as a medical perspective. And although the prevention of eating disorders is still critically under-emphasised in comparison to the active dominance of the clinical psychiatric approach, the analysis of the scientific literature has helped to provide a clearer picture of the general research trends in eating disorders, the paradigmatic attitudes that have led to changes in eating disorder prevention and interventions, the potential for change and the broadening of the role of social work in the context of the disease.