The following 5 books are excellent starts and are all Australian!

Real Gorgeous: the truth about body and beauty, by Kaz Cooke (1997)
An excellent and lighthearted read exploding myths about body and weight and poking fun at the industries trying to keep you obsessed with your appearance (ie magazines, cosmetic industries and plastic surgeons!)

Good Girls do Swallow, by Rachael Oakes-Ash (2000).
Written by an Australian journalist describing her fight with anorexia, bulimia and weight/appearance concerns. Very good read for people wrestling with these issues themselves as well as for anyone interested in developing an insight into the experience of living with eating concerns.

When Eating is Everything, by Ball, Butrow and Place (1991).
Develop insight into your eating patterns and how to go about seeking help. Contains strategies for self help as well. Continues to be a very popular book and very relevant.

Eating for Peak Performance, by Rosemary Stanton(1994).
Again an excellent book to help debunk some myths about eating and exercise. Very strong healthy eating focus, and talks about all of the types of foods needed to maintain a healthy and optimally functioning brain and body.

Eating Disorders: a survival guide for friends and family, by Ball and Ball (1995).
This book is written specifically for friends and family concerned about eating disorders. There are many stories about how families survived eating disorders, and provides many useful tips on communication, managing destructive behaviours and self care.

The Body Burden : Living in the shadow of Barbie, by Stacey Handler
This book is actually written by Barbie's daughter! Discusses the burden of appearance and having to maintain body image.

Useful Websites

The University of Queensland based Eating Disorders Association website contains information about different eating disorders, a chat room, booklist and information for family and friends about eating problems.

Eating Disorders contains useful information on eating problems, sources of help and treatment options, and a really good page on why diets don't work. This is a Victorian based organisation. There is also a good library section.

More information and stories are listed here, along with sources of help in the state of NSW.

This WA website has an information package which is designed to provide you with some information about disordered eating - how it develops, how it is maintained, and strategies to start to change the problem behaviours associated with disordered eating. This infopax is organised into modules that are designed to be worked through in sequence. See also part B of the online package here

The Butterfly Foundation is a community based charitable organisation that supports eating disorder sufferers and their carers through direct financial relief, advocacy and lobbying, awareness campaigns, health promotion and early intervention work and professional training in primary and secondary schools.

This site contains information for males who are experiencing eating problems. While the referral information is for the USA only, there is still useful info and a good library for further assistance.

This site seeks to address the unrealistic expectations of beauty placed on women, and encourages them to embrace a more positive body image. In particular, this video shows how images of women in the media are manipulated.

Just Ask Us is a national website for university students run by Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre. The Just Ask Us website is aimed at university students who are seeking information or help in relation to a wide range of health issues, including alcohol, drugs, mental health and well-being. The website provides information on a variety of health topics and links to support services offered by university campus counselling services and key treatment and support services nationally.