Eating Disorders and Body Image Among Teens

Register at https://www.additudemag.com/webinar/eating-disorders-body-image-teens-mental-health/ for this free expert webinar. Not available October 27? Don’t worry. Register and you’ll receive the replay link to watch at your convenience.

Eating Disorders & Body Image in Teens

The pandemic has brought with it a troubling surge in eating disorders. The numbers are alarming: National eating disorder hotlines report a 70% spike in call volume, and hospitalizations for eating disorders have doubled in the last three years.

Eating disorders have among the highest mortality rate for any mental illness (and yes, they are considered a mental illness and not a behavioral issue), but stigma and shame often keep people from seeking help. Researchers have found that two types of eating disorders in particular, bulimia and binge eating, often co-occur with ADHD. A 2007 study conducted at Harvard Medical School found that girls with ADHD were almost four times more likely to have an eating disorder than were those without ADHD.

Critics blame social media for driving the increase in eating disorders. In fact, nearly a dozen lawsuits have been filed by families against the parent company of Instagram, saying that the platform has harmed the mental health of minors.

Meanwhile, teens and young adults are forming secret online communities to discuss eating disorders, crash diets, looking skinny, and ways to lose weight — and these chats have their own hashtags and phrases on YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, and Twitter to hide from parents and to evade these platforms’ policies.

In this special Mental Health Out Loud conversation, Dena Cabrera, Psy.D., will answer questions about eating disorders from the ADDitude community. Topics of discussion will include:

• Different types of eating disorders, how these present differently in boys and girls, & how eating disorders differ from disordered eating
• How social media’s influence on tweens and teens contributes to disordered eating
• Signs to help parents and others identify an eating disorder in a person when it might not be apparent
• How to identify and best address the underlying self-esteem issues that are common among adolescents with eating disorders. How can caregivers help build up a child who has low self-esteem?
• How to start a conversation with adolescents & young adults about the dangers of eating disorders without judgment or blame
• What are best practices for treating comorbid ADHD and eating disorders? For example, do practitioners hesitate to treat ADHD with stimulant medication, which can suppress appetite?

Meet the Expert Speaker: Dena Cabrera, Psy.D., CEDS, is a Clinical Psychologist and Certified Eating Disorder Specialist with over 24 years of experience treating psychological and psychiatric disorders. Before opening her own private practice in Anthem, Arizona, she served as the Vice President of Clinical Services for Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders. Dr. Cabrera is a nationally recognized expert in her field, having authored numerous articles and publications. She previously served as president of the International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals (IAEDP).