Janet Treasure on eating disorders and the quest for answers

The Life Scientific

BBC

Technology, Personal Journals, Society & Culture, Science

4.6 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 9 July 2024

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

From anorexia nervosa to binge-eating, eating disorders are potentially fatal conditions that are traditionally very difficult to diagnose and treat - not least because those affected often don’t recognise that there’s anything wrong. But also because of the diverse factors that can influence and encourage them.

Janet Treasure is a Professor of Psychiatry at King’s College, London - where she's focused on understanding the drivers behind these disorders, to help develop more effective treatments. Her study of twins in the 1980s offered one of the earliest arguments of a genetic link to anorexia, rather than the purely psychological motivations accepted at the time; while her most recent work explores holistic ways to better treat these conditions.

Speaking to Jim Al-Khalili, Janet explains the work that's revealed anorexia's roots in both body and mind - as well as how attitudes towards eating disorders are slowly changing.

Presented by Jim Al-Khalili Produced by Lucy Taylor

Transcript

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0:40.1	BBC Sounds Music Radio, radio podcasts.
0:43.6	Hello and welcome to the podcast edition of the Life Scientific.
0:47.0	I'm Jim Alcalie and this is the show where I get to talk with some of the world's
0:50.5	leading scientists and you get to find out what drives them.
0:54.3	So sit back, get comfortable and enjoy the episode.
0:58.1	Today we're talking about eating disorders, a term covering a range of conditions from anorexia nevosa to binge eating.
1:06.3	These conditions, physically and emotionally damaging and potentially fatal, have proved extremely
1:11.6	difficult to diagnose and treat, not least because those affected
1:15.4	often don't recognize or acknowledge that there's anything wrong.
1:19.8	But my guest today has made huge inroads in furthering our understanding in the field, as well as
1:24.4	helping to dispel some of the stigma around these disorders.
1:28.0	Janet Treasure is a professor of psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at Kings College London.
	...

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