Eating Disorders – Awareness and Understanding

Questions to the Mayor of London – answered at on 1 March 2022.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Andrew Boff Andrew Boff Conservative

What can the Mayor do to ensure that all GPs and other front-line staff have an understanding of eating disorders? Too often people are being told they are "not thin enough" or "they don't look like they have an eating disorder" - both statements can be detrimental to that individual.

Photo of Sadiq Khan Sadiq Khan Mayor of London

These are both deeply concerning statements.

Although I am not responsible for health and care services, including eating disorder treatment, I will continue to use my role as Mayor to call for equal and improved provision of and access to services across London. I continue to meet regularly with senior NHS leaders to champion and challenge them to provide the high-quality care Londoners deserve, including adherence to evidence-based guidance.

NHS England & Improvement and Healthy London Partnership are working with adult eating disorder (AED) services to ensure that AED pathways remove any barriers to access such as weight or BMI, and there are plans to remove BMI thresholds in 22/23.

My health advisor Dr Tom Coffey is himself a practising GP. He continues to endorse eating disorder guidelines for professionals, raising awareness of the signs of eating disorders, and how to support children and young people across different settings.