One in seven. One in five. 41.9 million.
Males who experience an eating disorder by age 40. Females who experience an eating disorder by age 40. Estimated number of unrepresented global eating disorder cases in 2019. (1, 2)
The toll these disorders take on human life is staggering, not just in sheer numbers but in cases that so often impact people before they have the chance to know or see or understand who they are, how much they can grow, and what they have to offer the world.
All that potential, that sense of self-worth, gets whittled down instead to a number on the scale. Instead of seeing how big they can be, people afflicted with these conditions strive to be small: to make the slightest dent possible in the space around them, the shallowest impact possible upon the ground.
One-quarter to one-third. One-quarter to one-third. One in five.
The number of people with anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge eating disorder (BED) who have contemplated suicide. The number of people with AN, BN, and BED who have attempted suicide. The estimated number of female AN patients between age 15 and 35 who will die of suicide. (3, 4)
There is no number big enough to encompass the sorrow associated with eating disorders. The loss of joy, the loss of time, and the loss of life that can be traced back to these conditions. The countless gifts these people have inside them that are lost to a misguided focus on shape, size, and worth. The families and friends who share in the heartache and hardship.
62.8%. 68.2%. 70.5 per 100,000.
The number of AN patients who made full recovery in one 2017 study. The number of BN patients who made full recovery in one 2017 study. The number of eating disorder-related deaths, it’s estimated, could be stopped with increased treatment coverage. (1, 5)
Recovery from eating disorders is entirely possible. These conditions have far from foregone conclusions when treated with the right kind of care.
Cognitive behavioral therapy, family-based therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, acceptance commitment therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, and nutrition counseling are just a few of the evidence-based treatments that have shown results; to help patients redirect the energy spent feeling less than, the energy spent attempting to make themselves physically less than, and to use that energy instead toward establishing a sense of acceptance, peace, and love.
These treatments and others can help shift someone’s mindset from striving to be small to embracing the bigness of life: To savor the good, learn from the bad, and move on from the ugly with grace. To meet life as it comes, ready to take everything it has to offer and to add everything they have to offer in return. To understand the rareness and beauty that is the chance to live in this world and to embrace it for all it’s worth.
20,501.
The number of people who participated in support groups run by the National Alliance for Eating Disorders in 2023. (6)
Participating in support groups can help people struggling with eating disorders see that they’re not alone. It allows them to form alliances and build community, to help and be helped, and to produce a sense of healing that is greater than the sum of its parts.
And raising awareness around eating disorders and the many treatment methods that can help is a key way to spread the truth about these conditions: That they don’t have to be a death sentence, and they don’t have to be forever.
Not one more life has to be lost to eating disorders. With a commitment to outreach and care, it’s a new statistic we can all build together.
Within Health is the first comprehensive, remote eating disorder treatment provider created and supported by a team of clinical experts in the field, with treatment plans tailored to be accessible and personalized to meet each patient with the treatment they need when and where they need it. Within’s clinical expertise is matched with advanced proprietary remote patient monitoring technology, offering a higher level of care and delivering intensive outpatient program (IOP) and partial hospitalization program (PHP) eating disorder treatment services. Integrating individual therapy, remote patient monitoring, advanced nutrition therapy, and personalized meal support, this holistic approach is designed to halt the progression of eating disorders, avert relapses, and promote sustainable recovery.
RESOURCES:
- Ward, Z. J., Rodriguez, P., Wright, D. R., Austin, S. B., & Long, M. W. (2019). Estimation of Eating Disorders Prevalence by Age and Associations With Mortality in a Simulated Nationally Representative US Cohort. JAMA network open, 2(10), e1912925.
- Santomauro, D., Melen, S., Mitchison, D., Vos, T., Whiteford, H., Ferrari, A. (2021). The hidden burden of eating disorders: an extension of estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. The Lancet Psychiatry, 8(4), 320-328.
- Smith, A. R., Zuromski, K. L., & Dodd, D. R. (2018). Eating disorders and suicidality: what we know, what we don’t know, and suggestions for future research. Current opinion in psychology, 22, 63–67.
- Gomez del Barrio, A., Pardo de Santayana, G., Ruiz Guerrero, F., Benito Gonzalez, P., Calcedo Giraldo, G., Gonzalez Gomez, J., Garcia-Unzueta, M.T. (2022). Suicidal ideation in a sample with a first-episode of restrictive eating disorders: The role of biomarkers. Journal of Affective Disorders Reports, 7.
- Eddy, K. T., Tabri, N., Thomas, J. J., Murray, H. B., Keshaviah, A., Hastings, E., Edkins, K., Krishna, M., Herzog, D. B., Keel, P. K., & Franko, D. L. (2017). Recovery From Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa at 22-Year Follow-Up. The Journal of clinical psychiatry, 78(2), 184–189.
- Not One More. National Alliance for Eating Disorders. Accessed January 2024.