Give food a chance: treating anorexia nervosa without drugs and psychology.
The eating disorder, anorexia nervosa, is a potentially lethal, leading cause of disability in young women, and a biological perspective on this important problem might further our understanding of the physiological control of energy balance. The article by Södersten, Nergardh, Bergh, Zandian, and Scheurink describes a new treatment for anorexia nervosa with an impressive success rate and without prescription drugs or psychotherapy. Like the cause of the disease, this new method of treatment lacks a firm theoretical foundation based on experimental data. The authors' explanation for their success rate, however, is intriguing. This new treatment is as worthy of study as any of the others now available. I encourage clinicians to give this biological perspective a fair evaluation, and behavioral neuroendocrinologists to consider the implications for physiological control of ingestive and reproductive behavior.
Schneider
Jill E
JE
Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, 111 Research Drive, B217 Iacocca Hall, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA. js0v@lehigh.edu
D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D001835:Body Weight; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006706:Homeostasis; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male