The National Institute of Mental Health states, “3 percent of teens are affected by an eating disorder but most do not receive treatment.” Yet out of all the 30 million people who have an eating disorder in the United States, “95 percent of these individuals are people ages 12-25,” according to information found on the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa & Associated Disorders (ANAD) website, which means that many of these cases are teenage patients. We can speculate on why teens are a high percentage of eating disorder cases, but the question remains: how do you know if your teen has an eating disorder?
I did not have an eating disorder as a teenager, but I had various “disordered eating” patterns starting at age 22 and ending at age 25. I fell right into the above statistic and I am fortunate that I am recovered from an eating disorder.
Read More: 6 Signs Your Teen May Have an Eating Disorder
Be Aware,
