11 Facts About Eating Disorders

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For support, resources, and treatment options, contact the National Eating Disorders Association. Additional resources can be found at the bottom of this page.

1. Eating disorders are mental and physical illnesses categorized by unhealthy relationships with food and serious disturbances in eating behavior.^[“Eating Disorders: About More Than Food.” National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/eating-disorders/index.shtml. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

2. Three of the most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa (severely restricting food), binge-eating disorder (eating exceptionally large quantities of food and losing control over eating behavior), and bulimia nervosa (binge-eating followed by behaviors to compensate for overeating like vomiting or excessive exercise).^[“Eating Disorders: About More Than Food.” National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/eating-disorders/index.shtml. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

3. While eating disorders can affect anyone, there are a variety of biological, physcological, and sociocultural risk factors, including but not limited to body image dissatisfaction, weight stigma, personal trauma, and family history of mental illness.^[“Risk Factors.” National Eating Disorders Association. https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/risk-factors. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

Through our Mirror Messages campaign, post encouraging notes in your school bathroom (a place that can trigger low self-esteem) to give your classmates a confidence boost.

4. An estimated 30 million people in the US struggle with an eating disorder (20 million women and 10 million men).^[“Eating Disorders.” Mental Health America. https://www.mhanational.org/conditions/eating-disorders. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

5. It’s common for people with an eating disorder to have one or more co-occuring conditions. One study found that 71% of people with an eating disorder were also diagnosed with an anxiety or mood disorder.^[“Psychiatric Comorbidity In Women And Men With Eating Disorders Results From A Large Clinical Database.” Journal of Psychiatry Research, 2015. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

6. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Every hour, at least one person dies in the US as a direct result from an eating disorder.^[“Facts About Eating Disorders: What the Research Shows.” Eating Disorders Coalition. http://eatingdisorderscoalition.org.s208556.gridserver.com/couch/uploads/file/fact-sheet_2016.pdf. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020. “Former NIMH Director Thomas Insel: Spotlight on Eating Disorders.” National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/directors/thomas-insel/blog/2012/spotlight-on-eating-disorders.shtml. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

7. In the US, eating disorder research is the least funded of all mental illness research. In 2018, the US Department of Health & Human Services spent $38 million researching eating disorders, compared to $213 million researching anxiety disorders and $500 million researching depression.^[“Estimates of Funding for Various Research, Condition, and Disease Categories (RCDC).” US Department of Health and Human Services. https://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending.aspx. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

8. Almost 3% of teenagers (ages 13-18) are diagnosed with an eating disorder. Although teenage girls are generally at a higher risk of developing an eating disorder than boys, 1 in 5 teenagers with bulimia nervosa and 1 in 4 teenagers with anorexia nervosa is male.^[“April 2018: Eating Disorder in Adolescents.” US Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/news/e-updates/april-2018-eating-disorders/index.html. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

9. Research shows that global rates of disordered eating have increased from 2000 to 2018. One study found that rates were increasing faster in male, low-income, and older populations.^[“Prevalence Of Eating Disorders Over The 2000–2018 Period: A Systematic Literature Review.” The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/109/5/1402/5480601. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020. “The Changing Demographic Profile Of Eating Disorder Behaviors In The Community.” BMC Public Health. https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-14-943. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.”]

10. In a study of 14- and 15-year-olds, dieting was the most important predictor of developing an eating disorder. Those who dieted moderately were 5x more likely to develop an eating disorder, and those who practiced extreme restriction were 18x more likely to develop an eating disorder than those who did not diet.^[“Preventing Obesity and Eating Disorders in Adolescents.” Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/138/3/e20161649. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

11. Although eating disorders can be successfully treated, only 1 in 10 people with an eating disorder ever receives treatment.^[“Facts About Eating Disorders: What the Research Shows.” Eating Disorders Coalition. http://eatingdisorderscoalition.org.s208556.gridserver.com/couch/uploads/file/Eating%20Disorders%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf. Accessed Feb. 20, 2020.]

Additional Resources

Eating Disorders: National Eating Disorder Association, call the Eating Disorder Helpline at 800-931-2237, or chat online (see hours online).

Personal Crisis: Crisis Text Line, text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor 24/7

Suicide: National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 24 hour hotline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)