The West Virginia University Disordered Eating Center in Charleston, WV joined the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) as it marked National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (NEDAwareness Week), February 23 – March 1, in an annual campaign to bring public attention to the critical needs of people with eating disorders and their families.
During NEDAwareness Week, health professionals, individuals and families who are dealing with this disorder work to raise awareness about body image and bring national attention to the severity of eating disorders, which are bio-psycho-social illnesses with often devastating—sometimes life-threatening—consequences. While there is hope and recovery is possible, particularly with early intervention, many people suffer from the long-term effects of these illnesses.
“Eating disorders affect up to one out of three females and one out of ten men. Individuals may have all different shapes and body sizes, yet still be suffering from very problematic behaviors and attitudes,” says Jessica Luzier, Ph.D., clinical director of the WVU Disordered Eating Center of Charleston. It is estimated that 20 million women and 10 million men suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating or other eating disorders. “We know that the sooner someone gets treatment for their eating disorder, the more likely it is that they will recover.”
The WVU Disordered Eating Center of Charleston (DECC) was launched in the summer of 2010 by Drs. Stephen Sondike and Jessica Luzier. DECC is a multidisciplinary outpatient treatment program that provides services for youth and adults with disordered eating, including clinical eating disorders. Team members include psychologists, social workers, a dietician, and physicians specializing in adolescent medicine, psychiatry, and internal medicine. The DECC team meets twice monthly to discuss the progress of individuals receiving treatment and to review current research on the treatment of disordered eating. All team members have received extensive training in assessment and intervention with disordered eating patients, and utilize journal club, conferences, and continuing education opportunities to remain current in their knowledge and skills. Between meetings team members regularly collaborate to provide the most effective, evidence-based care for patients, and collectively address complex clinical issues.
The mission of the team is two-fold: to treat patients with eating disorders, and to educate the public and prevent the onset of eating disorders in those not yet afflicted.
Awareness and prevention are major commitments for the WVU-DECC. Eating disorders remain hidden and are often associated with misinformation and strong emotions in both those patients and their families and friends. There is an imperative to increase public awareness and provide high fidelity information to counter the myths and shame associated with these perilous medical and psychiatric conditions. Luzier routinely presents workshops on disordered eating for local educators, schools, and clinicians to raise awareness of the frequency and urgency of this problem, to highlight signs and symptoms and assist them in making assessments and necessary referrals. In the Summer of 2013, Luzier developed the WV Eating Disorder Network, which aimed to develop a registry of providers across West Virginia who are interested in treating patients with eating disorders. The network routinely disseminates information on trainings in the area, provides consultation on challenging cases, and serves as a potential referral source for individuals around the state. The First Annual West Virginia Eating Disorder Network Conference will take place on April 11, 2014 in Charleston; this will provide a networking and training opportunity for providers across the state.
Luzier and her team are glad to see this week dedicated to heightening awareness of eating disorders. “It’s important for individuals and families to know there is hope and treatment available for these very challenging disorders.” For more information on DECC, please visit http://charleston.hsc.wvu.edu/DECC/.
U.S. Statistics on Eating Disorders
- By age 6, girls especially start to express concerns about their own weight or shape
- 40-60% of elementary school girls (ages 6-12) are concerned about their weight or about becoming too fat. This concern endures through life
- 46% of nine- to 11-year-olds are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets and 82% of their families are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets
- Even among clearly non-overweight girls, over one-third report dieting
- 35% of “normal dieters” progress to pathological dieting. Of those, 20-25% progress to partial or full-syndrome eating disorders
- Over one-half of teenage girls and nearly one-third of teenage boys use unhealthy weight control behaviors such as skipping meals, fasting, smoking cigarettes, vomiting and taking laxatives
- There has been a rise in incidence of anorexia in young women 15-19 in each decade since 1930
The rate of development of new cases of eating disorders overall has been increasing since 1950 - 40% of newly identified cases of anorexia are in girls 15-19 years old
- The prevalence of eating disorders is similar among non-Hispanic Whites, Hispanics, African-Americans and Asians, with the exception that anorexia nervosa is more common among non-Hispanic Whites
- It is common for eating disorders to occur with one or more other psychiatric disorders, which can complicate treatment and make recovery more difficult. Among those who suffer from eating disorders, alcohol and other substance abuse disorders are four times more common than in the general populations
- The average American woman is 5’4” tall and weighs 165 pounds. The average Miss America winner is 5’7” and weighs 121 pounds
- Most fashion models are thinner than 98% of American women
- For females between 15 and 24 years-old who suffer from anorexia nervosa, the mortality rate associated with the illness is 12 times higher than the death rate of all other causes of death.
10 Signs of an Eating Disorder
- Drastic weight loss
- Preoccupation with counting calories
- The need to weigh yourself several times a day
- Excessive exercise
- Binge eating or purging
- Food rituals, like taking tiny bites, skipping food groups or re-arranging food on the plate
- Avoiding meals or only wanting to eat alone
- Taking laxatives or diuretics
- Smoking to curb appetite
- Persistent view of yourself as fat that worsens despite weight loss
