ABSTRACT
The Duchess of Windsor is reputed to have said that' 'no woman can be too rich or too thin." The "too thin" aspect of this adage is emphasized in the eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, which occur primarily in females. Anorexia nervosa is characterized by a relentless pursuit of thinness, dread of weight gain, food restriction, and overactivity. Bulimia nervosa, which originally appeared in the literature as a symptom of anorexia nervosa, involves episodic binge eating of substantial quantities of food followed by purging. As both disorders are complex and multiply determined, their comprehensive assessment is often difficult.
