Hurrah for the article on eating disorders and body image. Eating disorders are life-threatening illnesses and dieting and body image disturbances are epidemic problems in our society. We need to talk about this issue. I must, however, point out that I was misquoted in the article. As an eating disorder specialist, I feel compelled to correct the misinformation in order not to mislead the public. Eating disorders do not develop as a result of getting on the scale and feeling guilty or from eating a big meal. These things may be symptoms of an eating disorder, but eating disorders are far more complex. There are three major factors why an individual will develop an eating disorder.
1. Genetic predisposition. New studies show that there are higher incidences of eating disorders among family members and particularly identical twins.
2. Cultural pressure for women to be thin. There is no doubt that our society promotes thinness as a way to success and beauty. At this point, young girls feel pressured to diet and lose weight as a normal part of being female. Dieting taken to an extreme can become an eating disorder.
3. Underlying psychological factors. There are many things like low self-esteem, perfectionism, family discord and divorce that may contribute to the development of an eating disorder particularly in this cultural climate where weight loss provides an instant feeling of control and success.
There are few people who meet the full blown syndrome criteria for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa, but there are millions of women and an increasingly number of men starving, bingeing, and or purging and weighing their self-esteem on a scale. All of these people need help to develop a healthy relationship with food and themselves.
Carolyn Costin, director
Eating Disorder Center of California
Monte Nido Treatment Center