Book Description

The simple format of this basic overview of eating disorders makes it easy to locate pertinent components of medical nutrition therapy care of patients with eating disorders. The purpose is to give registered dietitians a starting point to provide medical nutrition therapy for patients with eating disorders. As the author notes, no single book can deliver all the necessary information regarding eating disorders, but this pocket guide can provide a basic foundation. The book is written for registered dietitians (RDs) who will be assessing the nutritional status of patients with eating disorders. While this book is best suited for RDs, it could be a good review for other healthcare professionals who are interested in understanding the detail required to adequately assess eating disorder patients and the time needed for successful nutrition intervention. As a pocket guide, the format tends toward bullet points and text boxes of useful information and it is easy to quickly locate what you need. Half of the book focuses on nutrition assessment and the many components that the RD needs to take into consideration. The other half focuses on the various interventions, meal planning methodologies, nutrition education interventions, and nutrition counseling interventions. Many tables and text boxes convey the information. One text box presents meal and snack plans that would be appropriate for eating disorders. Another text box is devoted to guidelines for food interventions. Although the book has no color copy or photos, the intent is not to visually stimulate, but to disseminate the appropriate information in a quick and easy manner. This is an essential guide for RDs to have as a reference, while all healthcare professionals interested in understanding what medical nutrition therapy with eating disorders entails could benefit. Amy Hess-Fischl, MS, RD, LDN, BC-ADM, CDE(University of Chicago Medical Center).