THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 5, 1994 TAG: 9408050073
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH BEST, HIGH SCHOOL CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Long : 107 lines
IT'S SUMMER, the season of skin, the season of shame.
Warm weather means midriff tops, short shorts, string bikinis - styles that can trigger some of society's serious problems: eating disorders.
The numbers of teens with eating disorders is on the rise, according to studies by the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders in Illinois. The nonprofit group estimates that 11 percent of teenagers suffer from some sort of eating disorder. Most victims are women. And in college, the numbers climb even higher.
``There's no question that we are at epidemic levels,'' said Christopher Athas, the association's vice president. ``It's a terrible, deadly disease.''
Most eating disorders start as innocent diets, according to Elaine Landau, author of ``Why are They Starving Themselves: Understanding Anexora Nervosa and Bulimia.''
That's what happened to the late Christy Henrich, a world class gymnast who died last week of anorexia and bulimia. Henrich barely missed making the 1988 Olympic team and started dieting after a judge commented on her weight. After six years of battling the disease, she died in a Kansas City, Mo., hospital of multiple organ system failure at age 22.
Most people who develop eating disorders are between the ages 10 and 26. About 86 percent report them by age 20, Athas said.
Adell Healy, 16, a rising senior at Western Branch, was 10 and in the fifth-grade, making the transition from private to public school when it started for her. She found it hard to meet friends and got depressed. ``I didn't have an appetite. . . . If I looked, smelled or ate food, I felt sick.''
Adell's parents noticed her weight loss.
``I was very skinny,'' Adell said. ``My parents wanted to put me in a hospital. They wanted me to go to counseling. They tried to get me to eat, but nothing worked.''
Adell's parents enrolled her in personality development and self-esteem classes at a local modeling agency, Charm Associates. The class helped Adell build her self-esteem and led to modeling classes. Adell said she became more outgoing, and by age 12, eating was no longer a problem.
Adell was lucky. Many victims require years of counseling and therapy to overcome the illness.
As with Adell, low self-esteem and depression are major causes of eating disorders, according to Joan Jacobs Brumberg, author of ``Fasting Girls.'' Physical and emotional abuse can also trigger eating disorders.
Those who suffer from an eating disorder may also have a fear of intimacy, said Michelle Ford, a therapist at the Eating Disorders Institute in Virginia Beach. But no one can actually trigger eating disorders.
``Nobody causes it; nobody cures it, but you can contribute to it,'' Ford said.
One Bayside High School senior said taunts from an uncle who called her fat contributed to her bulimia.
``It got to the point where I couldn't take it anymore,'' she said.
She started eating more food than normal and throwing up afterward. Friends tried to help her, but she didn't listen. Her parents found out one night when they were eating dinner at a restaurant. The bathroom stalls were filled, so she ran out of the restaurant and threw up in the parking lot. Her father followed her, only then realizing what had been happening.
``I felt insecure,'' she said, still shaken by the experience. ``I didn't want to go out because I thought people were talking about my weight. I even tried to commit suicide because of it.''
Ford said that friends are frequently aware of eating disorders. In many cases, the parents also know, but sometimes they are in denial.
``Some are simply ignorant and don't know the signs. They don't know what to look for,'' Ford said. The first step toward reaching out to help those with eating disorders is recognizing the signs, she added.
But what if a friend has a problem but will not get help? Ford said the best way to help is to show concern without passing judgment.
``Tell them what you see behaviorally,'' Ford said. ``The first step is to tell them you are absorbing their behavior. The second step is saying you're concerned.
``Make sure suspicions are true,'' Ford added. ``Then be there to support them. Letting them know you care about them can help them get help.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Elizabeth Best is a 1994 graduate of Indian River High.
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EATING DISORDERS
The three major types of eating disorders are:
Bulimia or eating large quantities of food in a short amount of
time with subsequent purging via self-induced vomiting, starvation,
laxatives, diet pills, diuretics, appetite suppressants or excessive
exercise.
Anorexia nervosa - the pursuit of thinness characterized by
willful starvation.
Compulsive overeating - a continuing impulse to consume large
quantities of food.
MORE INFO
If you need information about eating disorders, questions about
where to go for help or even want a speaker to come to your school
contact:
The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated
Disorders, Inc.
Box 7
Highland Park, Ill. 60035
(708) 831-3438
by CNB