Abstract:

Objective

To evaluate the effect of Body Awareness Therapy (BAT), a specific treatment method for dealing with body-image disturbances, in anorexia nervosa in the young patient.

Methods

A consecutive group of patients receiving family therapy was randomly assigned to Body Awareness Therapy. The patients were examined at treatment start and at 2-year follow-up. The eating disorder symptoms were evaluated with the Global Clinical Score, Ch-EAT and EDI. The body-image disturbances were examined with the Visual Size Estimation technique.

Results

We found no differences in the overall treatment results between the patients that received BAT compared with the patients who only received family therapy. The patients who received BAT, and had a disturbance in estimated body size, improved in their body image.

Discussion

Body Awareness Therapy did not have an effect on the overall outcome of anorexia nervosa, but had a normalizing effect on the distorted body image. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Keywords: anorexia nervosa; body image; Body Awareness Therapy; family therapy

Language: English

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-0968(200002)8:1<19::AID-ERV329>3.0.CO;2-K

Affiliations: 1: Department of Child and Youth Psychiatry, University Hospital of Lund, Sweden *