Bulimia in an Egyptian Student: A case study

Abstract

The diagnosis and treatment of bulimia in underdeveloped countries is not well documented. The following is a case study of a young Egyptian woman who met the diagnosis for bulimia according to DSM‐/I/‐R (Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, American Psychiatric Association, 1987) and was treated in her native country of Egypt. The study examines individual and familial issues relevant to the disorder as well as hypotheses about the effects of conflicts engendered by cross‐cultural and sociocultural factors on the etiology of the disorder.

U.S. Muslim women and body image: Links among objectification theory constructs and the hijab.

“…The limited body image research with Muslim women includes case studies and descriptive or comparative studies. Case studies of Muslim women in countries such as Trinidad, Egypt, and Pakistan have been interpreted to implicate exposure to Western cultural standards of beauty as well as indigenous religious, cultural, and family contexts as factors in the development of eating disorders (e.g., Ali & Maharajh, 2004; Ford, 1992; Yager & Smith, 1993). Descriptive and comparative studies suggest similar levels (Button, Reveley, & Palmer, 1998; Mussap, 2009; Nobakht & Dezhkam, 2000) or higher levels (e.g., Edman & Yates, 2004; Indran & Hatta, 1995; Thomas, James, & Bachmann, 2002) of body image and eating problems among Muslim women relative to non-Muslim populations.…”

Are eating disorders culture-bound syndromes? Implications for conceptualizing their etiology.

“…When authors made no comment on this issue, we used all available information to code the study appropriately. We developed six categorizations in this regard: (a) No—at least one reported case where the author specifically noted that the case lacked exposure to Western influence (e.g., Abou-Saleh, Younis, & Karim, 1998, described a case of AN in an 18-year-old nomadic woman from the Empty Quarter in the United Arab Emirates and specifically noted the absence of Western influence in this case); (b) Unlikely—at least one case likely meets all of the following criteria: comes from a nonurban region, is of low socioeconomic status, resides within a traditional family, has not surpassed secondary education, and is non-English speaking; (c) Probable—all cases likely meet at least one of the following criteria: reside in an urban setting, are of high socioeconomic status, are English-speaking, or have higher educational attainment (i.e., baccalaureate or higher); (d) Definite—all cases spent considerable time in a Western nation before developing eating pathology (e.g., Ford, 1992, reported a case of BN in an Egyptian individual who developed the disorder after spending ages 5–17 in Canada); (e) Indeterminable—not enough information was provided to determine the degree of Western influence (e.g., data come from patients treated in an urban medical center; however, it is not possible to determine if any patients would fit above criteria for unlikely or no Western influence); and (f) Unknown—the original article was not written in English and information on Western influence was not included in the English abstract or English review article from which data were taken. Both the presence of weight concerns and Western influence were coded by consensus between Pamela K. Keel and Kelly L. Klump.…”

Experimental Evidence that Theistic‐Religious Body Affirmations Improve Women's Body Image

“…There are rich historical treatments of links between religion, body, and eating (e.g., Bemporad 1996; Bynum 1987; Keel and Klump 2003; Lelwica 1999; Miles 1995; Vandereycken and van Deth 1994). There are also several studies of women diagnosed with body image or eating disorders who have used their religious beliefs to justify or perpetuate their illness (see Banks 1997; Ford 1992; Graham, Spencer, and Andersen 1991; Joughin et al 1992; Morgan, Morgan, Marsden, and Lacey 2000). These historical and clinical cases suggest that the dynamics between religion and women's body image have a long and complicated history.…”