Outlook

Abstract

Having finished our editorial work, it is time to look back at what has been written in this book and to compare it with the expectations we had when we started. We are quite satisfied with the end product thanks to the collaboration of a large group of experienced researchers and clinicians. Several of the authors have presented really new data; others have taken a very personal view of the subject. What might have appeared to be another boring collection of repetitive scientific papers on a small fragment of modern health care turned out to be a kaleidoscopic panorama of eating disorders seen through the eyes of professionals who still are fascinated and challenged at the same time by the experiences anorectic and bulimic patients were able to share with them. Beside purely methodological issues, the previous pages include reports and discussions on the most divergent aspects of eating disorders, ranging from historical and sociocultural viewpoints, to biological and medical approaches, to psychological and psychotherapeutic issues. As such it presents the truly “biopsychosocial” perspective which is required in modern health care.