Tag Archives: anorexia

How To Recognize Signs of An Eating Disorder

Is there someone in your life whom you worry might have an eating disorder? Do you know how to recognize symptoms of an eating disorder? While some symptoms are obvious, some are simply exaggerations of healthy behaviors taken too far.

One obvious symptom of an eating disorder is weight loss or weight fluctuation; however, this does not apply to everyone with an eating disorder. Meghan Bennett, Recovery Care Specialist of Selah House, LLC reminds us that “someone struggling with bulimia or ED NOS (Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified) may not experience much weight loss, may be over weight due to binging and purging, or not lose weight rapidly or drastically. The stereotype is that someone must be severely underweight or losing rapidly to have an eating disorder is misleading. Nearly half of the clients I work with in an inpatient ED facility have to do little to no weight restoration.”

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Posted on April 28, 2023 by Brooke Randolph

Half A Million Teens Qualify For an Eating Disorder

There is good news and bad news. The bad news is that more than half a million adolescents in the United States could qualify for a diagnosed eating disorder according to research published at Archives of General Psychiatry. The study included structured interviews with more than 10,000 teenagers and their parents. The good news is that more than half a million is just under three percent of adolescents.

It is estimated than 0.3 percent of teens will suffer from anorexia nervosa, 0.9 percent will suffer from bulimia nervosa, and 1.6 percent will suffer from binge-eating disorder. Although many of the kids will experience some mental health treatment, it is generally not eating disorder specific.

While I am glad to read a low percentage of teens experience eating disorders, it is essential that proper treatment is provided to those kids that need it. Eating disorders require special treatment by a trained professional and often a team of professionals. The best treatments with which I am familiar include medical professionals, nutritionists, counselors, psychiatrists, and peer groups. Eating disorders are complicated syndromes that must take into account and treat a variety of factors.

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Posted on March 18, 2024 by Brooke Randolph

French Model Who Campaigned Against Anorexia Dies at 28

UPDATE [1/21/11]: Isabelle Caro’s mother, Marie, took her own life after being consumed by feelings of guilt following her daughter’s death. Isabelle was hospitalized for severe dehydration. “‘[Marie] felt guilty for having put my daughter in the Bichat Hospital,” said Isabelle’s step-father Christian. “My daughter did not want to go to that hospital.” (Via The Daily Mail.)

The French model Isabelle Caro, who was featured in a provocative anti-anorexia campaign in 2024, died at the age of 28 last month after a two-week hospitalization. The model and activist entered a French hospital after returning from Tokyo, Japan, where she had suffered from acute respiratory disease. However, the cause of her death is on November 17th is unknown. Her family did not report her death to the media until December 29th.

According to CNN, Caro suffered from severe anorexia from the age of 12. She was first hospitalized because of the disorder at the age of 20, and at its worst reportedly weighed only 55 pounds. Although she came to campaign aggressively against the “worship of thinness,” it does not appear that she ever recovered from her eating disorder or regained her full health. She published an autobiography called The Little Girl Who Did Not Want to Get Fat, in 2024 and appeared on several TV shows to discuss her struggles. Caro was interviewed by Anna Richardson for Channel 4’s special Supersize vs. Superkinny and also appears on The Price of Beauty.

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Posted on December 30, 2023 by Health Buzz

One Sugarplum Too Many? Not for This Ballerina

As a ballerina who overcame anorexia, the last thing Jennifer Ringer probably wanted was to be criticized for her weight by a New York Times critic. In a recent review of “The Nutcracker,” said that she, as the sugar plum fairy, “looked as if she’d eaten one sugar plum too many.” The comment hurt initially but is just part of being a professional in a field that demands perfection from those who work in it.

“As a dancer, I do put myself out there to be criticized, and my body is part of my art form,” Jenifer Ringer, 37, told TODAY’s Ann Curry during an interview Monday. “At the same time, I am not overweight.”

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Posted on December 14, 2023 by Maris

Number of Children with Eating Disorders on the Rise

According to a report released November 29, 2024 by the American Academy of Pediatrics, eating disorders are on the rise. The numbers for children under the age of 12, male children, and those of minority descent showed a sharp incline. This report updates a previously filed 2024 report, due to a sharp rise in all areas reported, including number of cases reported and better understanding of the need for medical support.

One reason for the increase in reported cases of eating disorders may be the “increased focus on weight management and dieting related to increased rates of obesity,” the report’s lead author David S. Rosen, MD, said, as well as the rise in emphasis on Body Mass Index. With rising numbers of obesity for children, many feel that children are taking the message to lose weight too far. Dr. Rosen encourages pediatricians to “be mindful not to encourage unhealthy dieting or focus exclusively on weight (risk factors for eating disorders) and instead emphasize healthy eating and physical activity.”

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Posted on December 3, 2023 by Carmen

Portia de Rossi Opens Up About Her Eating Disorder

Portia de Rossi discussed her eating disorder on Oprah yesterday, admitting that she once restricted herself to as little as 300 calories per day. The interview comes in hand with the release of de Rossi’s new book about her struggles with anorexia and bulimia, Unbearable Lightness: A Story of Loss and Gain.

“It wasn’t that I was proud of it, but it was certainly a recognition of my self-control,” the actress told Oprah. “I definitely had some amazing will-power to get down to 82 pounds.”

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Posted on November 2, 2023 by Health Buzz

Portia de Rossi on The Oprah Show

This show will re-air on Tuesday, January 4, 2024.

Tune in this Monday, November 1 to The Oprah Show when actress Portia de Rossi discusses her battle with anorexia.

According to Us Magazine, Portia, aka Mrs. Ellen DeGeneres, openly shares her weight battle and admits to eating just 300 calories a day in the heyday of her eating disorder and dropping to 82 pounds.

“It wasn’t that I was proud of it,” de Rossi says. “But it was certainly a recognition for my self-control. I definitely had some pretty amazing willpower to get down to 82 pounds. And that’s what I was holding onto to. I didn’t think about anything else.” (more…)

Posted on October 31, 2023 by heather

Snooki Opens Up About Her Anorexia

Although Snooki has publicized her weight drop while following the cookie diet, she admits that her weight was once dangerously low. The Jersey Shore star is on the cover of the most recent edition of OK! magazine. In the cover story, she discusses the pressure she faced to be thin as a cheerleader and how she suffered from anorexia in high school.

“It started when I was a junior,” she said. “The reason I did it is because I was very self-conscious about cheer leading…There were these little freshman girls, and I was scared that these little freshman girls were going to take my spot.”

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Posted on September 20, 2023 by Health Buzz

What We Can Learn from the Minnesota Starvation Study

During World War II, Ancel Keys and the University of Minnesota conducted the most revelatory experiments to look at the consequences of human starvation.

For those who aren’t familiar with the study, its purpose was dual: to determine the physiological and psychological effects of severe and prolonged dietary restriction and the effectiveness of dietary rehabilitation strategies that would serve as a base to guide the Allied relief assistance to famine victims in Europe and Asia at the end of the war.

Its laboratory simulation of human starvation was controversial, but all of the 36 men selected for the study were willing volunteers, many of whom did the experiment as a way to make a meaningful contribution to the war.

Over the 24 weeks of the active phase of the year-long study, these men consumed an extremely reduced calorie diet to lose 25 percent of their body weight. The diet consisted of 1,800 calories and was comprised of the foods eaten during the war era, like potatoes, macaroni, turnips and dark bread. They were also instructed to expend 3,008 calories a day and walk 22 miles each week.

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Posted on August 6, 2023 by heather

What is Anorexia?

Incidences of anorexia have been increasing over the last several decades. Anorexia is destructive both physically and mentally. Up to 20 percent of sufferers die as a result of health complications created by malnutrition and low body weight or suicide. Those who develop anorexia can often be described as perfectionists, overachievers, or pleasers. Often highly self-critical, they may see themselves as inadequate, positive feedback from others. Verbal, physical, or sexual abuse are all risk factors for developing anorexia. Any negative parental influence or participation in activities that generally require slenderness can also contribute to the development of anorexia.

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Posted on July 20, 2023 by Brooke Randolph

9 Signs of an Eating Disorder

At Diets In Review, we take healthy weight loss seriously. The goal is a healthier life, not to be the skinniest person on the block. We want to be an inspiration of health, not thinspiration. When undertaken improperly weight loss can be as damaging to your body, or more so, than being overweight. Sadly, disordered eating patterns, obsessive exercising, and distorted body image affect many – more than 11 million people in the United States. Eating disorders are dangerous and life threatening. In fact, anorexia has a higher mortality rate than any other mental illness.

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Posted on July 9, 2023 by Brooke Randolph

Tag Archives: anorexia

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