Your Dieting Daughter...Is She Dying For Attention?
Though easy to trivialize, weight loss and excessive exercise can cause significant health problems, and treatment has ballooned into a major industry. Costin, a therapist and former victim of an eating disorder, focuses on the most pathological problems: anorexia and bulimia nervosa and binge eating. Though she analyzes their social milieu, offering a statement of "Thin Commandments," this is primarily a how-to-cope guide for family members of the afflicted. Topics include symptoms, underlying psychological causes, separate preventative advice for parents, and a useful evaluation of today's most popular weight-loss programs and principles. The kind of concrete examples and practical guidance that may accompany professional therapy are provided in a supportive manner. Berg's work is a more expansive and polemical book, addressing most aspects of America's weight "crisis." Berg, a nutritionist and editor/publisher of Healthy Weight Journal, serves up a feast of facts on four major problems: dysfunctional eating, eating disorders, size prejudice, and remedies for the overweight. Condemning "diets," she instead proposes a wellness paradigm based on the Canadian "vitality" model, which calls for moderation in eating habits and an active, playful lifestyle. The book contains advice for parents but emphasizes that social change is needed in schools, organized sports, and federal policies that focus too narrowly on antiobesity. Unlike other books on this topic, the unique problems of boys and minority children are also explored. Though sometimes superficial and alarmist in tone, Berg's book is a valuable consciousness raiser. Both books are recommended for public libraries for both parents and concerned professionals needing inspiration.Antoinette Brinkman, Southwest Indiana Mental Health Ctr. Lib., EvansvilleCopyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.