14 DAY TRIAL // A new paper in the journal Pediatrics argues that obese teens who try to shake off the excess weight are prone to developing eating disorders. Bulimia and anorexia nervosa are the two medical conditions most common amongst these teens, researchers say.
Specialists led by Leslie Sim, Ph.D., at the Mayo Clinic Children's Center explain that, according to their investigations, about 6% of all adolescents suffer from an eating disorder.
According to EurekAlert, “Individuals with a history in the overweight or obese range represent a substantial portion of adolescents presenting for eating disorder treatment.”
Whereas the families of teens who are not overweight have fairly little trouble picking up on this issue, those of overweight teenagers more often than not fail to notice that something is wrong.
This is because, in such cases, the weight loss is seen as positive and by no means something to worry about.
“Given research that suggests early intervention promotes best chance of recovery, it is imperative that these children and adolescents' eating disorder symptoms are identified and intervention is offered before the disease progresses,” Dr. Leslie Sim argues.
Apart from the 6% teens that are suffering from eating disorders, 55% of female and 30% of male high schoolers are estimated to engage in behaviors such as fasting, binge eating, vomiting, and taking diet pills and/or laxatives.