If you or a young person is at immediate risk and needs urgent help with their mental health, please call the 24/7 urgent mental health line on 0800 145 6485.

If you are looking at this webpage then it’s possible you have some worries about your relationship with food and how you feel about your body. 

We know from research that the earlier a young person gets help for their eating disorder then there is a better chance of being able to make a full recovery. It is very brave to admit you are concerned and ask for help but you will probably find in time that you can look back and see it was the best decision you made. We know that the longer a young person has an eating disorder the greater risk there is of it having a very negative impact on all areas of their life.

What is an eating disorder?

An eating disorder is a mental health condition where you use the control of food to cope with feelings and other situations.

Unhealthy eating behaviours may include eating too much or too little or worrying about your weight or body shape.

Anyone can get an eating disorder, but teenagers and young adults are mostly affected.

With treatment, most people can recover from an eating disorder.

The most common eating disorders are:

  • anorexia nervosa (often called anorexia) – trying to control your weight by not eating enough food, exercising too much, or doing both
  • bulimia – losing control over how much you eat and then taking drastic action to not put on weight
  • binge eating disorder (BED) – eating large portions of food until you feel uncomfortably full

Other specified feeding or eating disorder (OSFED)

A person may have an OSFED if their symptoms do not exactly fit the expected symptoms for any specific eating disorders.

OSFED is the most common eating disorder.

Find out more about OSFED on the Beat website

Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID)

ARFID is when someone avoids certain foods, limits how much they eat or does both.

Beliefs about weight or body shape are not reasons why people develop ARFID.

Possible reasons for ARFID include:

  • negative feelings over the smell, taste or texture of certain foods
  • a response to a past experience with food that was upsetting, for example, choking or being sick after eating something
  • not feeling hungry or just a lack of interest in eating

Find out more about ARFID on the Beat website

'Christmas is Coming' - a poem about ARFID

Below you can watch a video called 'Christmas is Coming', with a poem written by a young person who has accessed our eating disorder services about their experiences living with avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID). The poem aims to shine a light on ARFID and some of the experiences people with ARFID face in their daily lives.

 

If you or people around you are worried that you have an unhealthy relationship with food, you could have an eating disorder.

Symptoms of eating disorders include:

  • Spending a lot of time worrying about your weight and body shape
  • Avoiding socialising when you think food will be involved
  • Eating very little food
  • Making yourself sick or taking laxatives after you eat
  • Exercising too much
  • Having very strict habits or routines around food
  • Changes in your mood, such as being withdrawn, anxious or depressed

You may also notice physical signs, including:

  • Feeling cold, tired or dizzy
  • Pains, tingling or numbness in your arms and legs (poor circulation)
  • Feeling your heart racing, fainting or feeling faint
  • Problems with your digestion, such as bloating, constipation or diarrhoea
  • Your weight being very high or very low for someone of your age and height
  • Not getting your period or other delayed signs of puberty

Sometimes people can be discouraged from recognising they need help by myths that they hear about eating disorders. The following myths and facts have been developed and provided by Beat, the national eating disorders charity:

Myth Fact
Eating disorders are just a fad diet gone too far.

Eating disorders are serious, mental illnesses which require prompt, appropriate treatment. Anorexia is the illness where people restrict the food they eat to a harmful extent. People with bulimia are rarely underweight.
Eating disorders only affect impressionable girls from privileged backgrounds.

Eating disorders can affect people of any age, gender, culture, ethnicity or background. Girls and young women aged 12-20 are most at risk. Up to 25 per cent of cases could be boys and men
Eating disorders are a lifestyle choice.

People with eating disorders do not choose to be ill, and they are not trying to seek attention. They can find it very difficult to believe that they are ill, and equally hard to acknowledge it once they do know. This is one of the most challenging aspects of how the illness affects someone’s thinking and behaviour.
Eating disorders are only a modern phenomenon.

Eating disorders were first observed and recorded in the 1680s and have been known throughout history. The pressures and pace of modern life and the spread of a global westernised culture play a part in any reported increase.
You can tell just by looking at someone if they have an eating disorder.

Eating disorders are mental illnesses – so it is someone’s thoughts, feelings and emotions that are involved. Eating disorders come in all shapes and sizes and not everyone affected will be very underweight or even ill-looking.
Eating disorders are caused by bad parents.

Parents don’t cause eating disorders. The causes are complex and many factors are involved. Parents and families can play a vital part in helping their loved ones beat an eating disorder, and the more they learn to understand the condition, the more they can help.
People with eating disorders are just trying to look think like their celebrity idols.

People with eating disorders typically have very low self esteem and feel worthless. They are more likely to wish to disappear and not be noticed than want to draw attention to themselves
No one ever really recovers from an eating disorder - you've got it for life.

Eating disorders are treatable and full recovery is possible. There can be serious long- term consequences to physical health if the conditions are not treated quickly. Some people do develop a long- term or recurrent eating disorder, but treatment is improving all the time.

We hope that the above has busted any myths you may heard about eating disorders and will encourage you to know that if you seek help people will understand your concerns and know how to help you.

It is a myth to say that boys do not develop eating disorders. They do!

Despite the stereotype that eating disorders only occur in women, about one in three people struggling with an eating disorder is male, and some eating disordered behaviors (including binge eating, purging, laxative abuse, and fasting for weight loss) are nearly as common among men as they are among women.

Boys and body image

There are numerous studies on male body image, and results vary widely. Many men have misconceived notions about their weight and physique, particularly the importance of muscularity. Findings include:

  • Most males would like to be lean and muscular, which typically represents the “ideal” male body type. Exposure to unattainable images in the media leads to male body dissatisfaction.
  • The sexual objectification of men and internalization of media images predicts drive for muscularity.
  • The desire for increased musculature is not uncommon, and it crosses age groups. 25% of normal weight males perceive themselves to be underweight and 90% of teenage boys exercised with the goal of bulking up.
  • Muscle dysmorphia, a subtype of body dysmorphic disorder, is an emerging condition that primarily affects male bodybuilders. Such individuals obsess about being adequately muscular. Compulsions include spending many hours in the gym, squandering excessive amounts of money on supplements, abnormal eating patterns, or use of steroids
  • Many men who have celebrity status have come forward to say that they have had an eating disorder in the past - there should NEVER be a stigma to having an eating disorder.
  • An eating disorder has the highest mortality rate of any other mental health illness and it has NO barriers when it comes to age or gender!
  • Boys - although they do not seek help readily – have every right to a service and must not be told this is a phase they are going through.

If you have read this and feel that you need some more help then the first step is letting someone know. This is really important as, if you have an eating disorder, you will need lots of understanding and support to help you recover.

Do you have a teacher, family friend, parent or good friend you can talk to? Once you have told someone you trust, it can be a real relief and the first step in beginning to recover. 

If you have lost weight, are using laxatives or making yourself sick after meals, it is important to make an appointment to see your GP. This is because these could also lead to serious physical health issues and you GP will need to just check you are okay by completing some investigations, such as checking your weight, height, heart rate and blood pressure. They may also take a blood sample to make sure that all your blood levels are okay.

Beat Eating Disorders helpline

Beat Eating Disorders charity provides a free eating disorders helpline for people of all ages from 3pm to 8pm, Monday to Friday, offering support and information. 

Support from the helpline is available by phone, email, webchat, and by letter. Calls to the helpline are free from landlines and mobile phones within the UK and do not appear on itemised bills.

More information about the helpline can be found on the Beat website.

Beat self-help resources

Beat Eating Disorders charity also has a section on their website with some useful self-help and self-care resources, including guidance around journaling and creating an action plan.