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We need to eat to live. But what we eat, and how often, can sometimes turn into an obsessive preoccupation.
It's no wonder why. We are constantly bombarded with images of fashionably dressed thin women on television, in magazines and in movies. Articles on dieting and slimming techniques appear in virtually every woman's magazine, yet photos of women in need of either are seldom to be found.
The glorification of thinness in our culture has led girls and women everywhere to live in constant fear of becoming "fat." The fear can start at a very early age and is something many women struggle with throughout their lifetimes, going on and off a wide variety of diets that can potentially wreak havoc on their bodies. Add perfectionist personality traits and perhaps a genetic susceptibility to the pervasive image and eating disorders often result. Though boys and men can have eating disorders, too, it is far more common in girls and women.
Twenty years ago virtually no one outside of medical institutions knew about eating disorders. Following the death of musician and singer Karen Carpenter from an eating disorder in 1983, people became more aware of the problem.
Today we know that more than 5 million women in the United States are affected by eating disorders. More than 90 percent are adolescent and young adult women, those most concerned about body image. Experts say eating disorders, with onset typically between the ages of 13 and 14, and then again at ages 17 and 18, are now being seen in children as young as 10.
The consequences can be severe, sometimes leading to starvation, cardiac arrest, kidney damage, low blood pressure, other medical complications and even suicide.
People with eating disorders may refuse to admit they have a problem. Even the thinnest among them may still view themselves as fat. Family and friends can help recognize an eating disorder and encourage the person to seek treatment.
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External Sources
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The National Eating Disorders Association
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The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders
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This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.
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