Who is this book for?
If you’re a mental health professional looking to deepen your understanding of eating disorders, New to Eating Disorders, eited by Jane Morris and Caz Nahman offers a practical and structured way to learn. Designed as a resource for trainers and trainees, this workbook is particularly helpful for experienced mental health clinicians working in general psychiatry who want to gain foundational knowledge in eating disorders care.
The book consists of 12 chapters, each encouraging guided discussions with an experienced supervisor on the core principles of eating disorders management. It even includes tools like a supervision contract and feedback template to support structured learning which we loved!
Key Notes:
The workbook is currently being updated to incorporate more recent guidelines, such as MEED (Medical Emergencies in Eating Disorders).
While the focus is on anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, it briefly touches on ARFID (Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder).
Focus on Nutrition
We have focussed our review on the chapter titled Nutritional Care: Dietetic Interventions Including Behavioural Interventions.
This chapter includes:
Case studies to explore your learning on relationship with food and understanding what a “healthy weight.
An overview of common dietary changes observed in eating disorders and insights into why these behaviours occur, referencing research like the Minnesota starvation study.
Discussion of trends such as orthorexia and the impact of social media, including "pro-ana" content.
The chapter outlines key dietary changes commonly seen in individuals with eating disorders, but it misses an opportunity to define what normal eating might look like and how this can differ during eating disorder care. While it highlights the rise of orthorexia and the impact of "pro-ana" websites, it doesn’t delve deeply into the evolving influence of social media on eating behaviors.
A valuable addition to this chapter would be guidance for clinicians to provide consistent nutritional messages based on the REAL food pyramid and principles of normal eating. The chapter does offer clear information about the dietitian’s role, but it could go further by clarifying their responsibilities in prescribing meal plans and more about the research into oral Nutritional supplements and Nasogastric feeding. This would help ensure that other clinicians understand these boundaries and avoid inadvertently stepping outside of their scope of practice.
How to Use This Book
If you’re new to eating disorders, this resource is ideal for structuring supervision sessions with an experienced mentor. However, for dietitians and nutritionists seeking in-depth knowledge about nutritional care, the nutrition chapter may serve as a helpful introduction but won’t provide the depth needed. Supplementing your learning with additional, specialised resources from reputable sources such as the British Dietetic Association, Royal College of Psychiatry, The Association for Nutrition as well as our educational materials.
Final Thoughts
New to Eating Disorders is a valuable tool for clinicians at the beginning of their journey into eating disorders care. While the upcoming updates will hopefully address gaps and reflect current guidance, the book is still a solid starting point for structuring supervision and fostering discussions on essential principles. If you are a Dietitian or Nutritionists working in eating disorders be prepared to seek out additional resources and an experience supervisor. Want to know more about getting started working in eating disorders? Check out out blog 'A guide to Starting a Career in Eating Disorders Nutrition' that contains a list of useful CPD sources and insights form experts in the field.
Reference:
Morris, J. and Nahman, C., 2020. New to eating disorders. Cambridge University Press.
Opmerkingen