The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

3290.0: Monday, November 11, 2002 - 5:00 PM

Abstract #33615

Jewish faith-based interventions for eating disorders

Robyn Beth Shumer, MPH, School of Public Health - Office of Public Health Practice, University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey, 317 George Street, Suite 203, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-2008, 732-235-9451, shumerrb@umdnj.edu and Rusell Marx, MD, Eating Disorder Unit, Princeton Medical Center, Witherspoon Street, Princeton, NJ 08543.

Eating disorders are more prevalent among females in the United States than ever before and are especially prominent among Jewish girls and women. Young girls are often dissatisfied with their bodies, experiment with dieting, and some continue on this path until they develop a clinical eating disorder. Many eating disorders manifest during early adolescence. This project was developed with the understanding that many young Jewish women attend religious school in preparation for their Bat Mitzvah, and thus interact on an individual and personal level with their religious institution’s Rabbi. The role of the family Rabbi in eating disorder intervention has not been explored. This project was designed to assess Rabbis' knowledge of eating disorders in order to determine what Jewish spirituality Rabbis perceive to help one suffering with an eating disorder, in an effort to design a social marketing brochure to inform Rabbis about eating disorders.

Learning Objectives:

Keywords: Mental Health, Religion

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Cultural Aspects of Alternative and Complementary Health Practices

The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA