Eating disorders, which commonly begin in early childhood (10%) and the teen years (76%), are reaching epidemic levels, affecting more than 5 million Americans.
Some people blame this increase because there is too much talk about the dangers of being overweight and media exposure to super thin celebrities.
Is there anything you can do to prevent your child from developing an eating disorder? According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, to help prevent eating disorders from developing, families should ' learn to apply the principles of proper nutrition and physical activity and to avoid an unhealthy emphasis on weight and dieting.'
While there is no proven eating disorder prevention programs that work for all kids, there are some things that you can do that may decrease your child's chances of developing an eating disorder, such as anorexia and bulimia.
These include:
- Take steps to build your child's self esteem.
- Avoid talking about dieting and being thin or fat, instead try to talk about being at a healthy weight and eating more healthy.
- Teach your child, or see your Pediatrician, about the normal changes that a teen's body goes through during puberty, which might include a widening of the hips and putting on some weight.
- Talk to your children about how to be healthy, including eating nutritious meals and snacks and being physically active. Being healthy is not just about not being overweight. A person who is thin but inactive is usually considered less healthy than someone who is overweight but active.
- See your Pediatrician each year to help monitor your child's growth and development and talk about nutrition. Your Peditrician can also ask screening questions that might reveal that your child has an eating disorder. According to the AAP, these questions might include asking:
- What is the most you ever weighed? How tall were you then? When was that?
- What is the least you ever weighed in the past year? How tall were you then? When was that?
- What do you think you ought to weigh?
- Exercise: how much, how often, level of intensity? How stressed are you if you miss a workout?
- Current dietary practices: ask for specifics—amounts, food groups, fluids, restrictions?
You should also learn about and review the many signs that a child might have an eating disorder, especially having a fear of gaining weight or of being overweight.
