Book Review

Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth: Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment

N Engl J Med 2009; 360:2797June 25, 2009

Article

Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth: Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment
Second edition. Edited by Linda Smolak and J. Kevin Thompson. 389 pp. Washington, DC, American Psychological Association, 2009. $59.95. ISBN: 978-1-4338-0405-2

This is the second edition of a book that was well received when it was first published. It has been updated substantially and now has a focus on problems of body image, eating disorders, and obesity in youth. The title may at first seem perplexing to readers who are unfamiliar with this area. However, in the preface and throughout the text, the editors make it clear that to link these four subjects — body image, eating disorders, obesity, and youth — not only makes sense, but also allows them to fully develop a number of related and overlapping topics. Both youths with eating disorders and obese youths have significant problems with body image, and there are other important relationships between eating disorders and obesity as well. Therefore, the package of topics delivered in this book works quite well.

Overall, the book is well edited, with little redundancy, and any overlap is necessary and informative, adding different perspectives to several areas. The authors of the individual chapters are well known for their work. The chapters are divided into four sections, beginning with an introduction by the editors in which they outline the tasks ahead. The next section consists of eight chapters under the heading “Foundations” and encompasses various aspects of the general problem, including parental influences on body image and disordered eating and the causes and behaviors that are associated with childhood obesity. Also included is information on ethnic diversity and cross-cultural issues — topics that are often overlooked in the scientific and clinical literature. The third section of the book, “Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment,” includes chapters on the assessment of body image and eating disturbances in youths, offers a thorough and interesting review on the prevention of negative body image and disordered eating in children and adolescents, and provides useful reviews on the prevention and treatment of obesity in childhood and adolescence. There is also a very interesting chapter on plastic surgery for children and adolescents — another topic that is rarely addressed. In the book's last section, the editors sum up the rest of the book nicely and pose additional questions for future research.

The book accomplishes several things. First, although it is written in a scholarly fashion and the various sections include excellent reviews of the recent literature, it is not at all dry, but instead reads quite well. Second, the authors do not shy away from theoretical models, and indeed, in several of the chapters, interesting models are proposed that may be tested in future research. These models are clearly presented and well explicated. Third, and perhaps of greatest importance to the average reader, the book is practical, and the recommendations regarding assessment and treatment will provide helpful information for practicing clinicians.

This book will obviously be of great interest to those who work with children and adolescents who are obese or have eating disorders. Both groups will find much of interest, but also will be enlightened by reading about the overlap between the two fields. Practicing pediatricians, specialists in adolescent medicine, and family practitioners whose work includes a focus on children and adolescents will find much to admire in this book. It will also be useful for students in health-related fields and for nurses and social workers who work in settings that involve these populations. I highly recommend this thorough and scholarly, yet accessible and practical book.

James E. Mitchell, M.D.
Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Fargo, ND 58107
mitchell@medicine.nodak.edu