National Eating Disorder Awareness week helps to spread the truth about eating disorders
She had not eaten a full meal in nearly a week. She was surviving on small portions of food such as fruit or vegetables and large amounts of water. The need for her to feel empty and light was too strong and she could not get past it. She was not to her goal yet, which meant that she had to work harder; eat less. A girl snickered at her in the bathroom the other day, probably because of her weight. If she accidentally ate too much it took her no longer than 10 minutes to get it out of her system. There was a constant voice in her head, whispering less, less, less. She is one of the 8 million people in the U.S. who suffer from an eating disorder. Feb. 23 through March 1 is National Eating Disorder Awareness Week.
“An eating disorder is when a person is obsessed about eating habits, weight and body image,” Nurse Jenny Causey said.
Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental disorder, and can be caused by a variety of reasons. One of every five people with anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder in which sufferers starve themselves or cut back dramatically on food to lose weight, dies eventually due to problems related to the disorder. It has been related to its cousin disorder, bulimia nervosa, which is characterized by having larger than normal amounts of food and calories, followed by behaviors to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting and laxatives.
“I struggled with bulimia,” an anonymous senior said. “I don’t really know how to explain what it was like other than dark, and it took over my world. I didn’t feel full unless I was empty. It started just like it usually does. Society tells us we need to be thin to be beautiful and I was determined to get that way.”
Not all eating disorders are about losing weight. Binge eating is an eating disorder in which the individual consumes very large amounts of food frequently without the weight loss behaviors following. There is also EDNOS (Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified) which is an unhealthy eating habit that does not fit along the criteria of another eating disorder.
As a kid, senior Kyle Estes struggled with eating too much. He did not pay attention to what he ate, and had what people called “Rhianna” hips. He decided to make a change in his life.
“Through hard work and dedication, I have achieved what I thought would be impossible, and that was a physique that I’m proud of,” Estes said. “If a kid can go from an eating disorder to being one of the strongest kids in school, then anything is possible. You just have to set your mind to it.”
A common misconception is that only women suffer from eating disorders. Approximately 10 million males in the United States will suffer from an eating disorder at some time in their life. They are reported as less likely to get help because of the idea that eating disorders are a “woman’s illness”. Working out too often without paying attention to nutritional values and calories is what commonly leads to eating disorders among men, and the percentage of disordered men who seek help is significantly lower than women.
Junior Jack Wood has recovered from anorexia nervosa, which started for him around the ninth grade and ended around his tenth grade year. He dropped to 90 pounds before he found his path to recovery. He dismisses the idea that only women can have eating disorders.
“I think it is completely untrue, and I say that because I myself had an issue, and several other males do as well,” Wood said. “It does not affect females alone, but society as a whole.”
The purpose of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week is to prevent eating disorders and provide information to people all over the world. This year’s theme is “I Had No Idea”, and it aims toward the recognition of how much eating disorders really do affect individuals, families and communities and to raise awareness of eating disorders as a whole.
“The more information people have on eating disorders, the more understanding they will have as well,” sophomore Briana Grant said.
Although Grant has never had an eating disorder, she is teased all of the time for her weight because of how naturally skinny and tall she is.
“People would say I’m too skinny, or that I don’t look like I eat and I need to eat more,” Grant said. “It used to hurt my feelings and it has made me question myself a lot. Every now and then I catch myself comparing my body to other girls, but now it just made me stronger. I’m proud of who I am.”
The week of awareness does not only aim to help put an end to eating disorders, but also promote healthy body images of all types.
“Get involved, definitely,” Wood said. “Get people interested and motivated. Get the word out there. Get people interested in the subject with interesting topics. For instance, did you know eating disorders are more common than green eyes?”
