What are signs of teen eating disorders?

Both teen boys and teen girls can have an eating disorder. One type of eating disorder is taking extreme measures to lose weight. Boys can suffer from these eating disorders, but they are more common in girls. These eating disorders include anorexia (which is extreme calorie restriction) and bulimia (which is excessive eating following by intentional purging, either by throwing up or using laxatives). Boys with eating disorders are more likely to be working to increase their weight, particularly their muscle mass. As a result, their eating disorders may include using steroids or food supplements, or greatly raising their caloric intake.

Diagnosing Eating Disorders

Because consequences of eating disorders can be severe, early diagnosis is crucial. Between one and two of every 10 cases of anorexia leads to death from starvation, cardiac arrest, medical complications or suicide. Eating disorders in general can disrupt physical and emotional growth in teenagers and can lead to premature osteoporosis, a condition where bones are weakened and more susceptible to fracture; increase infertility; and raise the risk of miscarriages or low-birth-weight babies. Anorexia may be especially deadly for women with insulin dependent diabetes if they omit or under-use insulin to control their weight. Insulin therapy can, sometimes, cause weight gain but changing insulin dosages to lose weight can be very dangerous and life-threatening.

About Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are devastating mental illnesses that affect more than 7 million American women. Ninety percent of the people who suffer from the eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are women, according to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. Although they revolve around eating and body weight, eating disorders aren't about food, but about feelings and self-expression. Women with eating disorders use food and dieting as ways of coping with life's stresses. For some, food becomes a source of comfort and nurturing, or a way to control or release stress. For others, losing weight is a way to gain the approval of friends and family. Eating disorders are not diets, signs of personal weakness or problems that will go away without treatment.

NEDA