Joan Bakewell apologises for 'pain' caused by eating disorder comments

Broadcaster Joan Bakewell has apologised for the "enormous upset" caused after suggesting that eating disorders are a sign of "narcissism".

Baroness Bakewell, 82, said in a Sunday Times interview that the growing rate of eating disorders in teenagers was a sign of the "overindulgence of our society" and pointed out that the conditions do not occur in countries ravaged by poverty and war.

The Labour Party peer's comments sparked outrage from campaigners who said that the causes of anorexia and bullemia are complex.

Appearing at a press conference to announce the shortlist of the Wellcome Book Prize on Monday, she said that she was "naively" made "off the cuff remarks".

Video report by ITV social affairs editor Penny Marshall.

Bakewell admitted that she spent about six hours responding to people on social media who had been offended by her comments.

On Sunday, she said she was "full of regret" over the comments before saying she was taking a break from Twitter.

In the article, Bakewell was quoted as saying: "I am alarmed by anorexia among young people, which arises presumably because they are preoccupied with being beautiful and healthy and thin.

"No-one has anorexia in societies where there is not enough food. They do not have anorexia in the camps in Syria. I think it's possible anorexia could be about narcissism."

She added: "To be unhappy because you are the wrong weight is a sign of the overindulgence of our society, over-introspection, narcissism, really."

Earlier this year, David Cameron pledged to ensure teenagers with eating disorders receive treatment more quickly.

From 2017/18 a new waiting time measure will track the proportion of patients being seen within a month of referral, or within a week for urgent cases.