Abstract
Eating disorders are complex and dangerous somatopsychic illnesses. Their etiology is multifactorial and based on individual genetic predisposition and personality factors. Society's promotion of unhealthy body ideals provides a breeding ground for the increasing prevalence of eating disorders in adolescents. Anorexia nervosa AN, bulimia nervosa BN, and binge eating BED represent only part of the eating disorder spectrum. Comorbidity with other mental disorders is high. Family-based therapies are effective in the outpatient treatment of AN, as are cognitive-behavioral approaches and drug treatment with SSRIs (fluoxetine) for BN. Despite improved treatment options in recent decades, there is still a substantial proportion of adolescent sufferers with a chronic course of the disease. Efforts to improve prevention and treatment of eating disorders must therefore be intensified.
Pauli, Dagmar