Doctors have encountered 77 cases or suspected cases of eating disorder in the first six months of this year, according to a survey carried out by the Health Promotion Department.

The study revealed that more than half of the cases were anorexia nervosa, while almost a quarter were bulimia.

Glossy magazines sporting rake-thin models on their front cover and the fashion world, where thin is in, have had a huge impact on young women wishing to emulate them.

The survey showed that 88 per cent of the cases were female, with almost half aged between 18 and 29 and more than a quarter under 17.

People with anorexia worry all the time about being fat, even if they are skinny. They skip meals and diet, losing a lot of weight in the process such that their periods stop - three cases had to be hospitalised last year.

On the other hand, bulimia is characterised by binge-eating followed by extreme guilt and self-induced vomiting or laxative abuse. Unlike anorexia, those who suffer from bulimia are not necessarily skinny and their weight can vary.

Department director Mario Spiteri said the statistics had led the department to launch the first Eating Disorders Awareness Week which opened yesterday and will run until Thursday.

Health Minister Louis Deguara said that while Europe and the US were battling with the problem of obesity, expected to become the number one killer in the next 15 years, there were others who were struggling with their body image.

Asked if Malta planned to follow in the footsteps of some European countries, which plan to tax fatty foods, Dr Deguara said taxes on smoking and alcohol had not served as a deterrent - education was the key to success.

Dr Deguara said the department was working to encourage a positive physical and emotional lifestyle in primary schools in an attempt to reduce the prevalence of eating disorders.

A disconcerting fact emerging from the Health Behaviour of School Aged Children survey (HSBC 2000) was that adolescents were very preoccupied by their body image.

The study, carried out among teenagers aged between 11 and 15, showed that more than half the children, especially girls, would like to change something in their appearance; more than a quarter thought they were fat and 13 per cent said they were not attractive.

Dr Spiteri said it was worrying that various schools and parents were recurrently reporting cases of eating disorders, especially in young females. Apart from that, many do not realise they have a problem so they do not bother to seek professional help.

Concern about body image, sometimes coupled with an underlying psychological problem such as unhappiness and emotional difficulties, may lead to a distortion of body image. The fear of getting fat, obsessive preoccupation with eating and excessive exercise can all lead to the development of an eating disorder.

The awareness week kicked off with a multimedia installation titled I Feel Guilty by Ian Attard at St James Cavalier, in Valletta.

A public seminar on eating disorders and the consequences will be held on Thursday at St James Cavalier at 6 p.m. to be followed by one for doctors at 8 p.m.

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