Eating behavior can be affected by bullying and up to 61% of ED cases present self-injurious behaviors. These disorders that are being evaluated are more serious and require more admissions than before the pandemic.
The most frequent eating disorders (TCA) are anorexia nervosa, bulimia and binge eating disorder. “Although they affect both sexes, these mental health problems are much more common in women than in men, with an incidence ranging from 4.1% to 6.4% in them, compared to 0.3% to 0.7 % in them”, affirms Sandra Fernández Ramos, clinical director of Arbore, a center specialized in the treatment of eating disorders and a Day Hospital attached to the Ministry of Health of the Community of Madrid, on the occasion of the commemoration of March 2 of the Day World Adolescent Mental Well-being.
“The age range in which these types of disorders appear is between 12 and 21 years, although the highest incidence peak occurs between 15 and 18 years,” he adds.
There is no doubt that the pandemic caused an increase in adolescent mental health disorders. According to the Spanish Society of Pediatric Emergencies (SEUP), diagnoses related to mental disorders in Pediatric Emergency Services increased by 10% from March 2019 to March 2021.
More specifically, ACRs have grown by around 40%. In addition, the cases detected are more serious and are diagnosed in more advanced stages and in younger people.
Thus, for example, “weight loss in patients with eating disorders is up to 50% higher after the pandemic,” says Miriam Blanco Hurtado, care director at Arbore. “A decrease has also been detected in the measure of age at onset of symptoms.”
Self-injurious behaviors and bullying
It is important to note that “bullying may be one of the many factors involved in the appearance of an eating disorder” for two fundamental reasons: on the one hand, being bullied is associated with emotional and self-esteem problems that could contribute to to the development or maintenance of TCAs; and on the other hand, teasing tends to focus on appearance, which leads to increased body dissatisfaction and dietary restriction, which are risk factors for the onset of EDs.
Likewise, “up to 61% of eating disorders cases present self-injurious behaviors,” according to both experts.
“The family environment is the key factor for the detection of the disease and the good physical and emotional development of young people,” says Sandra Fernández Ramos. From Arbore they help and accompany families in the task of caring for a person with an eating disorder, and not least, “to manage feelings of guilt, fear and frustration that sometimes accompanies them throughout the entire process”.
Those “alarm signs” in adolescents that can be helpful for early detection of eating disorders by family members are:
-Making excuses continuously to avoid eating.
– Skipping meals.
-Go to the bathroom immediately after meals.
-Very rapid weight loss or gain.
-Perform excessive and obsessive physical exercise.
-Weigh yourself very often.
-Wounds on the knuckles of the fingers as a result of self-inflicted vomiting.
-Changes in the appearance of the skin, hair loss and the appearance of hair on the body.
-Dizziness and low blood pressure.
-Feeling cold constantly.
Excessive concern about weight and body image.
-Isolate yourself for very long periods.
-Decreased academic performance or ability to concentrate.
-Social isolation.
-Emotional instability.
-Increased irritability.
-Anxiety at meal times.
-Thoughts of hurting yourself M.T.T. (SyM)