Eating disorders effects the whole family. Eatingdidordertreatment.com describes ways a parents can help their children overcome an eating disorder. They tell the parent that they need to be understanding. They believe that eating disorders are genetic and it should be easy for the parent to understand what their child is going through because at some point in their lives they could have experienced an eating disorder. "This means that if your child is struggling with an eating disorder, it is likely that you can relate to their battle, or at least understand their disordered thinking, poor body image, or issues with low self-esteem" (eatingdisorder.com). Barbara disuses how if a family is dealing with someone with an eatingdisorder is to get educated about eating disorders. The best thing a family can do for a child with an eating disorder is be supportive and stay positive. The more negativity you place on the child the worse the disorder can become.
For a child/teenager it can be very difficult to overcome an eating disorder. It requires a lot from the family. Most often eating disorders develop over time due to a number of factors such as low self-esteem, poor body image (due to media, school, etc), depression, etc. "Your son or daughter’s best chance for recovery is a unified treatment team, consisting of family members, medical doctors, nutritionists, and eating disorder specialists who all understand the treatment method being utilized and have joined forces against the disorder."(eatingdisorder.com). Dr. Cole discusses how family members can either choose to be the enemy or the ally. They can basically either help or hurt the member. The child affected by the eating disorder also needs professional help.
How can a family members help? Doctor's and professionals say that any kind of negative feedback or expressions this can cause the child with the eating disorder to feel worse about themselves, which can make the eating disorder harder to overcome. They also say to learn the language of the eating disorder and don't talk about how thin they are looking or pointing out their body parts that is causing them to have the disorder.
While trying to cope with someone who has an eating disorder it is important to be there for the child. No parent wants their child to have an eating disorder, but it is starng to become more and more often. The age at which they are starting is becoming younger an younger as well. It is estimated that 46% of 9-11 year olds are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets, and 82% of their families are on diets. Another fact 51% of 9-10 year olds feel better about themselves when they are on diets.
Do you think anyone in your family is battling an eating disorder?
How do you think a family can provided support for the child?
Is this something that needs to be addressed in the school system?
Felicia Cuartas
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I remember in class one of the other students spoke about a four year old who worried about what to eat. My father always taught us to just eat when we were hungry. I think it is so interesting the focus people have on what to eat,as I see it all the time in the women (and men) on campus. People do not realize how serious eating disorders are.
ReplyDeleteKimberly Wabik
It really is an issue. I have a 14 yr old sister who tells me she's fat and needs to go ona diet. She's very healthy and active she plays sports so when i heard her say that I was shocked because she plays sports. My sister does have curves she has big hips and thighs, but it runs in the family. I'm not small at all, so when m sister said that to me i told her it's just how our family is. She said yea, but I'm fat. I could've smacked her, because i wouldn't mind having her body at all. I love myself now, but I can't deny I had that problem. I think my father makes it worse (my sister lives in the same state as my sister) he used to tell me when i was 9-10 I'm overweight and need to lose weight. I would get so upset and hated going to my fathers, so sometimes i feel maybe my father is saying something to her even though you can tell shes very healthy. I don't know I think it's a very big issue now
ReplyDeleteFelicia
I agree. It is a bigger issue than we realize. I never realized how so many people may have one, and you may never know. I have met a few people at lesley who have shared that they have an eating disorder. Before them i didnt know anybody, that told me anyway. It's so sad how more and more common this is being. Especially in younger children.
ReplyDeleteSorry, the comment above is from Ashley Keating
ReplyDeleteI think that the idea that eating disorders are genetic is ridiculous. I would like to see some research that backs that up. To me, the trend of eating disorders in families seems more likely to be a cycle that women get stuck in; a woman who has pressure put on her by her mother to be thin then places the same pressures on her daughter, and the cycle continues.
ReplyDeleteWhen looking at this post I wonder who is Barbara? And how credible is this source? It sounds to me like it is a bunch of generalized statements that are not reinforced with facts and studies. I went to the website (www.eatingdisordertreatment.com) and it appeared to be a specific rehabilitation center called “The Victorian” in Newport Beach, California which means that these statements are most likely the opinion of this particular institution, and therefore can’t really be applied to the general population.
Eating disorders are a huge issues, and Felicia's point about her sister ties really well into the post about family pressures on individuals to be thin and fit and perfect and everything that goes along with eating disorders.
Cassidy
I'm very glad you mentioned how negative body perceptions, dieting and eating disorders has become more of an issue with younger and younger girls..
ReplyDeleteI babysit for a 4.5 year old girl in preschool who attempted to do push ups on her coffee table one time while i was babysitting-
So I said, "Sophie, what are you doing? that's unsafe!"
her response:
"mommy tells me if i don't do them my belly will be fat."
At that very moment I wanted to cry. It was extremely disturbing.
While know this child's mother diets and counts calories- it's amazing what children absorb, and the likely hood of this little girl having a dysfunctional relationship with food (starting very young) considering our SKINNY OBSESSED society and the way body image occurs in one's house growing up.
-Lindsey Bloomberg
Society definitely plays a huge role in eating disorders which goes without argument, but it is true that there have been recent findings in eating disorders having a genetic influence.
ReplyDeleteWhen reading Cassidy's post I remembered how even one of my professor's mentioned just today how eating disorders could be genetic. So, I looked it up online and there has been research done by Michigan State and the Maudsley Hospital in London where they found connections between genetics and eating disorders. Also, a doctor from Pittsburgh, Dr. Hans Hook, looked more specifically at eating disorders running in the family in an international study. He had believed that eating disorders were only a problem in western countries where society was putting an extreme emphasis and pressure on people being thin. However, when he looked at the island of Curacao in the Caribbean, where the people consider being fat to be attractive, he still found cases of anorexia nervosa meaning there must be a genetic link.
The sources I looked at did say that more research needs to be done on the connection between these genetic factors as well as the societal impact, but in the groups defense, it is true that there could be a connection between genetics and eating disorders.
I personally believe that even though this research is true, there is still a huge societal impact on eating disorders which can then create biological and psychological imbalances. I also agree that the family plays a crucial role in causing and preventing this because self-esteem is another huge factor of eating disorders and if the family can help the child develop better self-esteem, the chances may be less for them developing an eating disorder. However, some people may have an eating disorder because they like being in control, which would be hard for a family to stop because who likes to be told to stop being in control of themselves?
It is hard to say what the family should exactly do because it seems the specific eating disorder being looked at, the person's culture, family life and genetics need to all be taken into consideration. If the family is loving, understanding that there is a problem, and supportive of the child, however, I believe that just that would extremely help the child with this disorder.
The sources I looked at were from the BBC News and Science Daily. The websites are: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070511150158.htm and http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/259226.stm
~Meghan Slaalien