Like all mental illnesses, eating disorders are often stigmatized, cliched, and dramatized to dangerous degrees. In many cases, stigmas and expectations directed at eating disorders can prevent sufferers from seeking adequate treatment. The truth is, however, that eating disorders are not a lifestyle, aesthetic, or diet choice, but a mental health disorder similar to depression, bipolar disease, and schizophrenia. Continue reading to unpack some common myths about eating disorders, and get the facts instead.

MYTH: Everyone with an eating disorder is underweight.

While some eating disorders, such as anorexia, are categorized by extreme weight loss, most people struggling with eating disorders are not underweight. You can’t tell whether someone has an eating disorder just by looking at them, or even by watching them eat. An individual can experience a severe eating disorder and incur dangerous medical conditions from eating disorders such as bulimia or other specified feeding or eating disorders (OSFED) at any weight, or through fluctuating weight.

The perception that everyone with an eating disorder must be starving or emaciated can intensify distress in eating disorder sufferers, who may feel that they are not “sick enough” to require or deserve treatment. This stigma contributes to misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis, even from medical and mental healthcare professionals. More inclusive exposure and discussion of eating disorders in more body types could help eradicate stigma and lead to more early intervention and effective diagnoses. 

MYTH: Eating disorders only affect women.

People who suffer from eating disorders come in all shapes, sizes, ages, genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds. Media portrayals of eating disorders often focus on adolescent women, but eating disorders can affect anyone. With more effective studies on eating disorders in males, we are learning that there is a growing number of men seeking help for eating disorders. This could be because eating disorders are becoming more prevalent in men, or because more male sufferers are feeling empowered in recent years to seek diagnosis and support via anorexia treatment and other services.

It’s easy to assume that women suffer disproportionately from eating disorders because society is becoming increasingly aware and vocal about body image expectations forced on women. Body image and image distortion struggles are very common in eating disorders but are not a universal factor, or strictly a female issue. Eating disorders in men often focus on building muscle or bulking up, as a result of societal pressure, body image distortion, or other factors.

MYTH: My loved one needs to decide to end their eating disorder themself, there’s nothing I can do to help them.

Educating yourself about basic eating disorder information (and misinformation) and opening yourself up to being a part of your loved one’s healing process are the first steps to helping. Eating disorders thrive in secrecy and having someone who is open and not judgmental to an eating disorder can give sufferers invaluable opportunities to share their struggles and begin to leave secrecy behind on the path toward healing. 

Particularly as a parent or other respected figure in a sufferer’s light, your instincts about your loved one’s well-being should be trusted and used to champion diagnosis and safe, professional treatment. Approximately 95% of eating disorders arise between the ages of 12 and 25, making these authority figures a crucial first line of defense.

If you believe someone in your life may be struggling with an eating disorder, or are a sufferer yourself, contact us to learn about options for treatment and recovery. We offer anorexia treatment and a variety of services including anxiety treatment, online therapy, and more!