35% of “normal dieters” progress to pathological dieting. Of those, 20-25% develop an eating disorder
Americans get many mixed messages about health—and many of those messages are far from healthy. We hear about the virtues of "good" foods and the evils of the “bad” ones. Our national fixation on weight loss has resulted in $60 billion in profits for the diet industry – an industry whose products and weight loss plans are often the catalyst to an eating disorder. Research shows that 35% of “normal dieters” progress to pathological dieting and of those, 20-25% continue on to develop partial or full-syndrome eating disorders (Shisslak, Crago, & Estes, 1995). From TV commercials to bestselling books, there are countless ideas about what we should be eating and how we should be exercising. But this focus on food and weight in the name of “health” can become a dangerous and disruptive preoccupation for some.
All too often, the drive for thinness begins early in a person’s life. For example, 46% of 9-11 year-olds are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets (Gustafson-Larson & Terry, 1992) and 35-57% of adolescent girls engage in crash dieting, fasting, self-induced vomiting, diet pills or laxatives (Boutelle, Neumark-Sztainer, et al. 2002; Neumark-Sztainer & Hannan, 2001; Wertheim et al., 2009).
"Extreme dieting is never a healthy alternative. Among "normal" dieters, 35 percent will progress to pathological dieting and of those, 20-25 perfect progress to full-blown eating disorders. The Biggest Loser is not only a trigger to those on the show who are predisposed to develop an eating disorder but to viewers at home as well. We need to quit looking at the number on the scale and adopt a healthy lifestyle."
Read Here for More Information:
Orthorexia: Those who have an "unhealthy obsession" with otherwise healthy eating may be suffering from "orthorexia nervosa," a term which literally means "fixation on righteous eating."
-10 Ways to Recognize Orthorexia
Stories of Hope:
"My symptoms violently bounced between anorexia and bulimia and I became a master at hiding them. My eating disorder could not be perfectly boxed into a diagnostic code, which made it easy for my ED voice to always tell me, 'See, you're not that bad. You aren't underweight and you don't purge that much.'" -Read More Here:A Scale Can't Measure the Severity of Your Eating Disorder
"They do not have a clue about men having an Eating Disorder; I guess that is why I am there to help them to better understand the disease." -Read More Here: Reclaiming My Life
Get Involved:
Use the #NEDAwareness hashtag to join us for a Tweet Chat, A Slippery Slope: Identifying Disordered Behaviors Before they Go Too Far
Bullying is a major contributor to eating disorders - 65% say that it factored into their struggle.
While eating disorders may first appear to be solely about food and weight preoccupations, those who who struggle with them are often using their disordered eating to cope with feelings and emotions that may otherwise seem overwhelming. Bullying can trigger feelings of shame, isolation and hopelessness. It can also be a trigger for eating disorders. As many as 65% of people with an eating disorder said that bullying contributed to their condition (b-EAT).
Bullying and weight-related discrimination are commonplace in a culture that glorifies thinness and ridicules people of larger sizes. Unfortunately, weight discrimination occurs more frequently than age or gender discrimination.
Stories for Inspiration:
"At school, I envied the boys that could walk through the locker room with their shirts off without having a reasons to be ashamed, without being pointed and laughed at. I thought being thin would bring happiness but the real problem was love. I lacked love. Love from my family who was occupied by trying to put the pieces together after this divorce and mostly, LOVE FOR MYSELF."
Did you know athletes are at higher risk of developing an eating disorder?
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Body image problems, disordered eating and full-blown eating disorders are common among athletes. Though most athletes with eating disorders are female, male athletes are also at risk—especially those competing in sports such as wrestling, bodybuilding, gymnastics, and running, which tend to place an emphasis on the athlete’s diet, appearance, size, and weight requirements.
In a study of Division 1 NCAA athletes, over one-third of female athletes reported attitudes and symptoms placing them at risk for anorexia nervosa (Johnson, Powers, et al, 1999). In weight-class and aesthetic sports about 33% of males and up to 62% of females are affected by an eating disorder (Thompson, PhD. 2010). The good news is that with information and awareness, coaches, parents and teammates can all play an important role in confronting eating disorders and ensuring that athletics are a positive experience for everyone.
Eating disorders don’t discriminate. They can affect anyone regardless of race, gender, sexuality, etc. #NEDAwareness
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There are many stereotypes about what a person with an eating disorder looks like, but the truth is that these illnesses do not discriminate. Men and women of all ethnic backgrounds, ages, sizes, and sexualities are susceptible to poor body image and disordered eating. While women are more commonly affected by eating disorders, 10 million men and boys will battle some form of the illness at some point in their lifetime and, due in large part to stereotypes and cultural bias, males are much less likely to seek treatment for their eating disorder. Similarly, the National Comorbidity Survey Replication found no difference in eating disorder prevalence among adults across racial and ethnic groups (Hudson, Hiripi, et al. 2007). Yet minorities are significantly less likely to receive help for their eating issues. And despite the damaging assumptions that eating disorders are a “teenager’s problem,” recent research shows that rates of eating disorders and body dissatisfaction among older populations are on the rise. Research also suggests that eating disorders disproportionately impact some segments of LGBT populations. In addition to experiencing unique contributing factors, LGBT people may also face challenges for accessing treatment and support due to discrimination (Feldman & Meyer, 2007).
What is the Marginalized Voices Project and why is it important?
The National Eating Disorders Association, in association with feminist activist and the editor of Everyday Feminism, Melissa Fabello, is calling for stories that focus on underrepresented experiences and communities in the eating disorder field through the Marginalized Voices Project. We are looking especially for voices from marginalized communities and narratives that challenge eating disorder myths.
"Pick up any eating disorder memoir at your local bookstore, and you are more than likely to find some iteration of this narrative arc. Well-to-do, young white woman develops an eating disorder, spirals into near-oblivion, seeks treatment for her eating disorder (which usually results in her being admitted into a residential facility), experiences a myriad of successes and failures, and eventually commits to finding her Self again. Well-to-do, young white woman walks out of treatment with a new sense of hope on the road to recovery...
...Because here is what happens when the only eating disorder stories that we hear are the ones that fit the aforementioned description: We use them as examples to hold our own disorders up to. We use them to judge and determine what is and isn't 'really sick.' We start to trust that these narratives represent 'real' eating disorders, and that experiences that fall outside of these confines just don't count. And that's dangerous..."
"I'm sure he wanted to say more. Something like, 'You are a terrible human being for even needing to speak to a professional about our business. I don't even understand why you have such problems. I grew up poor, the oldest of five, and I was in the military. I lived in Germany for four years. All we had to eat growing up was frijoles and tortillas. And here you are, vomiting up the good food you have.'"
"I live in poverty and I do not identify as a straight female, so when people noticed my strange behaviors, they were easily attributed to my class and gender identity. When I struggled with eating, people assumed that it was because I was poor. When I avoided going out for meals, they thought it was because I didn't want to pick up the tab. When my mental health was questioned, no one asked if I was struggling with anorexia or bulimia. They asked if I was battling a DRUG ADDICTION; it explained the tempers, the behavior changes, the isolation, the weight loss, the pale complexion, the fine hairs, and all the other symptoms that could have been attributed to an eating disorder if I were middle class. The more that everyone, myself included, denied that I had a problem, the more I fell into my behaviors."
"I have always heard that eating disorders are "white folk" diseases, especially from those who are not white. Or, if someone accepts that eating disorders may affect minorities, they're diseases that you acquire in your teen years or in your early twenties. They are rich people's diseases. As a half-black, half-white, almost thirty-year-old woman who falls into the working class, I can tell you that those assumptions are simply not true. Eating disorders do not know age, race, or class."
"I theorized for a long time that I starved myself, in part, in order to desexualize myself, at least in the eyes of men. In high school, during the worst years of my eating disorder, I was extremely withdrawn and mostly avoided physical intimacy with the few people I dated. I felt disgusted when males looked at me in a sexual manner or complimented me on my body. I thought, at the time and for years afterward, that this response was solely because I was not attracted to men. I thought that my hatred of my breasts and desire to make them disappear, along with my hips and thighs and anything else "womanly," came from a desire to divert male attention while simultaneously punishing myself for not enjoying that attention, for not being straight."
"My weight loss was rapid; it disrupted everything in my life, and, at the time, it was a welcome distraction. For the first time in years, my sexual orientation was not at the forefront of my mind. Any sex drive I had vanished and I isolated myself from everyone: my friends, my crushes, my classmates. I thought that losing weight was a way for me to make something change, until I realized that I had lost control of that too. I was hospitalized for the first time during my sophomore year, with a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa."
'You should watch what you eat or no one will be able to lift you.'
'You're so small, how can you lift her?'
I've heard these comments regularly since adolescence. I use a wheelchair for mobility and require assistance with basic living tasks, such as using the restroom. When the school nurse first began making comments about my weight, I tried my best to ignore what she was saying. In order to avoid hearing her complain about lifting me, I started limiting my school restroom breaks to once a day, which meant I also had to limit how much I drank during the day. As time went on and the comments did not stop, I began limiting my food too - I was already limiting how much I drank, so restricting my food intake became just as easy."
Want to get involved in Media Literacy Day? Here's how: Get Involved
In our media saturated culture, it is hard to escape the onslaught of messages about our bodies. Eating disorders are complex illnesses with complex roots. We can't blame the media, but we do know that this steady stream of unrealistic ideals and digital illusions of "perfection" creates an environment where eating disorders and poor body image thrive. Of American elementary school girls who read magazines, 69% say that the pictures influence their concept of the ideal body shape. 47% say the pictures make them want to lose weight (Martin, 2010). The work of changing the media means recognizing and celebrating advertisements that send healthy body image messages, as well as taking the time to express our concerns about advertisements that send negative body image messages or promote unrealistic ideals. Being a savvy, critical consumer of media is crucial in the fight against eating disorders.
-NEDAwareness.org
This Toolkit has great exercises, surveys, and information on Media Literacy.
Stay connected with us on social media this week for more updates and information. National Eating Disorder Awareness Week is to raise awareness of the seriousness of eating disorders. We hope to improve public understanding of the causes, triggers, and treatments. Eating Disorders thrive on secrets and hidden behaviors, we hope to stunt their development by bringing them into the light. For more information on the key messages of this week and awareness campaigns visit the NEDAwareness.org website here: Key Messages of NEDAwareness Week Get your online screening here: http://www.mybodyscreening.org Play the NEDAwareness Memory Game Here!
