Anorexia Affects More And More Teenage Girls

By Margarita Nahapetyan

The national Health Service (NHS) has revealed in its recent survey that there has been a significant raise in the number of young girls admitted to hospital suffering from eating disorder called anorexia.

The number of girls 16 years of age and under with anorexia has jumped to 80 per cent over the last decade, from 256 cases in 1996/97 to 462 cases in 2006/07. The figures were revealed in a parliamentary answer by the Care Services minister Phil Hope.

The NHS data showed that girls aged 15 were hospitalized 141 times in England in 2006/07 compared to just 75 hospitalizations in 1996/97. The same was true among 16-year-olds, with figures jumping from 55 admissions in 1996/97 to 108 admissions in 2006/07.

Figures for 14-year-olds also rose over the decade, with 93 admissions in 2006/07 - up 60 per cent on the 58 admissions in 1996/97.

Among 13-year-old girls, there was a 38 per cent rise, from 34 admissions to 47. Shockingly enough, there was a 207 per cent raise among 12-year-olds from 13 hospitalizations to 40.

The data also showed 18 admissions among 11-year-old girls, up from 11 cases in 1996/97, and 10 admissions among 10-year-olds, up from 9 in 1996/97.

Among the girls under the age of 10 there was a rise from one admission in 1996/97 to five in 2006/07.

In addition, the NHS survey has showed rise in older girls suffering from the eating disorder. The figures point to 74 admissions among teenagers aged 17 from 51 ten years ago, while the number of 18-year-olds admitted to hospitals in England increased from 40 to 61.

Susan Ringwood, chief executive of the U.K. eating disorder charity, Beat, said, "We think these figures are very shocking. But we don't know, and the Government doesn't know because the data is not collected, how many people have a diagnosis of an eating disorder. We can't tell if there are more people actually suffering from an eating disorder in the first place or whether it is just that more are getting admitted to hospital."

The shadow Health minister Anne Milton said: "These figures are shocking. We are failing to get across to young people today the dangers they face when they abuse food. At one end of the scale we have some frightening statistics on obesity and on the other end of the scale we have many people suffering from this tragic illness.

Anorexia is an eating disorder in which a person becomes obsessed about gaining extra weight and severely limits food consumption or starves to feel more in control. Most people with anorexia disorder are women. There is no single cause of anorexia. According to The National Women's Health Information Center there are a number of contributing factors, such as:

• Hormonal changes or chemical changes in the brain

• A family history of anorexia, which can increase a person's risk of developing the disorder.

• Stressful or traumatizing experiences in life, such as major life changes or violent crime.

• Having a perfectionist personality, or having extremely high standards for one's self, also are risk factors.

• Exposure to a culture with an emphasis on slimness and good looks is another risk factor.