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Anorexia in the Elderly

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The Eating Disorders

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Abstract

The concept of fasting as a virtue originated in the Judeo-Christian tradition where it was utilized to scourge the flesh and thus purify the spirit. The early Passover rite gave birth to fasting during Lent, Ramadam and Yom Kippur, as well as the preparation for the Eucharistic sacrament are other Western fasting rituals that continue today. During the Middle Ages, the warrior class and the royal class fasted preparatory to being ennobled or enthroned. Anorectic symptoms were noted in the Italian Renaissance and depicted amoung young and old in the paintings of Florentine artists as Botticelli and della Francesca. These seem to be the first visual record of this condition in the modern West. The Judeo-Christian fasting rituals that were continued sought to purge the corrupt portion of Man’s duality. Simultaneously, the rediscovered Greco-Roman ideal of a slim silhouette was pursued with the mental, philosophical, and pharmacological tools of this period.1

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Authors
  1. A. James Giannini
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Ohio State University, 43210, Columbus, OH, USA

    A. James Giannini M.D. (Clinical Professor, Psychiatry) (Clinical Professor, Psychiatry)

  2. P.O. Box 2169, 44504, Youngstown, OH, USA

    A. James Giannini M.D. (Clinical Professor, Psychiatry) (Clinical Professor, Psychiatry)

  3. Regent Hospital, 425 E. 61th Street, 10021, New York, NY, USA

    Andrew E. Slaby M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H. (Medical Director) (Medical Director)

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© 1993 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.

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Giannini, A.J. (1993). Anorexia in the Elderly. In: Giannini, A.J., Slaby, A.E. (eds) The Eating Disorders. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-8300-0_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-8300-0_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-8302-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-8300-0

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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