Eating disorders are not being picked up early enough or responded to aggressively enough, says the chief of Victoria's largest community-based eating disorder service. or signup to continue reading A "lag" in diagnosis, a society that values exercise and what we eat, coupled with the barrage of social media messaging, have contributed , says Eating Disorders Victoria's Belinda Caldwell. She warns "we've lost touch with what a normal relationship with food looks like".
As a passionate advocate for early intervention and better mental health-led supports, Ms Caldwell says we need to do address issues early - and energetically. "Once a person is in hospital or emergency care, it's the end result of a long line of system failures," she said, after the launch of So what can be done at the other end of crisis - in the prevention space? Ms Caldwell urges parents and carers to model and nurture healthy relationships with food. Eating together as a family is one of the most important things you can do to safeguard against eating disorders.
"Family meals are highly protective," Ms Caldwell told the "We need to encourage and model that we should be eating regularly and sufficiently and eating a variety of foods. "It's dangerous to limit food groups or to describe types of food as either 'good' or 'bad'. "We really just want eating to be eating - it's not a moral value.
" Ms Caldwell pointed out that "we sit in a social context where what you eat, exercise ...
are valued in society". "Th.