Eating Disorders

View the PowerPoint presentation from our presenter, CHEAR Therapist/Doctoral Student Heather Halford, and learn about disordered eating in youth. Scroll below for more info and additional resources. Click Here to learn more about CHEAR and its resources.

Click Here for Full Presentation

For more resources around eating disorders go to NEDA (National Eating Disorders Association) for help.

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• signs of anorexia

  Losing weight unexpectedly and/or being dangerously thin (Despite their extreme thinness, kids with anorexia usually don’t think that they are unhealthy and actually want to lose even more weight.)

  Obsessing over calorie counts, nutritional facts, and diets

  Spending many hours exercising to burn off calories

  Skipping meals & Avoiding eating socially

  Information from the Child Mind Institute,
  Click here to read a quick guide to Anorexia Nervosa

• signs of bulimia

  Exercising excessively or using diet pills or laxatives

  Going to the bathroom immediately after meals

  Spending a lot of time in the bathroom

  Having a sore throat, sore knuckles, discolored teeth, and poor enamel

  Hoarding food in her room

  Having large amounts of food that go missing at home

  Information from the Child Mind Institute,
  Click here to read a quick guide to Bulimia Nervosa

• Preventing eating disorders

  Try to establish healthy eating habits. Make a routine of eating healthy, balanced meals as a family.

  Discuss foods in terms of how healthy they are, not how “good” or “bad” they are.

  Don’t criticize your child’s weight or appearance. Adolescence is a difficult time for most kids, and it’s essential to provide them with a nurturing and supportive environment.

  Some kids are more likely than others to develop eating disorders. Be extra vigilant.

  Information from Child Mind Institute, Click here to read the full article

• boys & eating disorders

  “Not all boys who express dissatisfaction with their bodies will develop an eating disorder. And unlike with girls, who often become alarmingly skinny and visibly unhealthy, eating disorders in boys are harder to recognize because often nothing looks “wrong” on the outside.

  Here’s what to look for if you’re trying to determine whether a boy’s habits are within the normal range of eating behavior or have crossed into something that needs attention”

  Excessive focus on and time spent exercising

  Rigidity around eating rituals

  Eating large of amounts of food

  Going to the bathroom in the middle of meals or right after

  Refusing to eat certain food groups

  Avoiding or withdrawing from social gatherings involving food

  Information from Child Mind Institute, Click here to read the full article.

• Other Eating Disorders

  Binge Eating Disorder: The primary symptoms of BED are recurring episodes of binge eating. Those episodes are defined by eating more food than most people would consume in a discrete period of time — for instance, within a 2-hour period — and a sense of lack of control over eating during the episode. A person with BED feels unable to stop. Click Here to Read More.

  Atypical Anorexia Nervosa: In this case the teenager, almost always a girl, is not noticeably thin. Usually overweight to begin, she too has become obsessed with extreme dieting and exercise, and has lost a dramatic amount of weight. She has the same thoughts and behaviors as someone with typical anorexia and is putting similar stress on her body. But she doesn’t look unhealthy, which means that this disorder often goes unnoticed. Click Here to Read More.

  Information from Child Mind Institute

Additional Resources

1. Eating Disorders, Child Mind Institute

2. Eating Disorders & Youth, Mental Health America

3. Eating Disorder Screening Test, Mental Health America

4. Family-Based Treatment for Eating Disorders, Child Mind Institute

5. The Family’s Role in Recovery from Eating Disorders, Child Mind Institute

6. Eating Disorder Statistics, National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (AAND)