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New research shows how the pandemic has raised awareness of eating disorders in children. Here you’ll find support, advice, and warning signs to look out for.
How the pandemic has fuelled a rise in eating disorders
Throughout the pandemic, many of us have turned to Google for our health worries or questions. We found that parents turned to Google for their concerns, especially eating disorder support. There has been a rise in searches on Google for eating disorder awareness, affecting children, teenagers and young people.
So we asked Bupa mental health advisers Harriet Finlayson and Danielle Panton their expert advice. On this page, they tell us the warning signs of an eating disorder and offer guidance for recovery and self-care. They also provide advice on how to talk to children about eating disorders.
You may have seen the impact of COVID-19 on your own family’s mental health, with heightened anxiety, stress, and worry. These are difficult times for everyone, but teenagers and children are particularly vulnerable because they’re still acquiring the coping skills and life experience they need to build resilience. Here’s what our own survey† about teenage reactions to the pandemic revealed:
46% of teens surveyed had altered their eating habits during lockdown
84% admitted to restricting food for a sense of control
41% of teens reported the same sense of control from eating more
Teenagers have turned to harmful coping mechanisms to manage their mental health during the pandemic, including controlling or restricting their food intake.
173%
173% increase in searches for eating disorder help’ in April 2021, compared to April 2020
125%
125% increase in searches for anorexia in children’ in April 2021, compared to April 2020
Types of eating disorders
While it’s normal to change your eating habits every now and again, it can become a problem if food and eating feel like they’re taking over: that’s when a disorder can develop.
Eating disorders are complex conditions that cause people to develop severely disrupted eating habits. For parents, it’s important to be aware of the different types of eating disorder because they’re most common in teenagers aged 13 to 17. There are lots of different eating disorders, each with unique symptoms. Some of the more common disorders are listed below.
Anorexia
A person who has anorexia nervosa will try to control their weight by not eating enough food and/or exercising excessively. Often, they have a distorted image of themselves, believing they are overweight when in fact they may be severely underweight.
Anorexia is a serious and complex mental health condition which requires expert professional help. It is the least common eating disorder, even though it may be one of the most widely recognised. Anorexia is most common in teenage girls and young women, and females are about four times more likely to be affected than males.
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Binge-eating is a common, serious but treatable eating disorder which can affect males and females, and usually starts in the late teens or early 20s. It involves recurring sessions of eating very large quantities of food, very rapidly.
Those who binge-eat may secretly hoard food, plan their sessions, and try to hide how much they’re eating. Unlike with bulimia, they don’t force themselves to be sick afterwards. During a binge they may feel distressed and out of control, while afterwards they may feel shame.
Bulimia
Bulimia nervosa is a serious mental health condition. It can be hard to spot because a person with bulimia may have a normal body weight, so the signs may be more around behaviour. Bulimia can affect anyone, male or female, but is most common in ages 13 to 17.
Bulimia shares similarities with some other eating disorders. As with anorexia, those with bulimia try to control their weight, may exercise excessively, and may have a distorted body image but bulimia means eating a lot, rather than very little. And like binge-eating, those with bulimia tend to eat a lot in a short time, usually secretively, although someone with bulimia will force themselves to be sick afterwards or may over-use laxatives.
Orthorexia
Orthorexia is a newly identified disorder in which the person develops an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating, or pure eating’. So unlike with anorexia or bulimia, for example, orthorexia is about the quality of the food, rather than the quantity.
Someone with orthorexia may be obsessive about researching foods or reading the ingredients in food. They may eliminate entire food groups and have a very restricted diet, which can lead to malnutrition. Orthorexia can interfere with daily life and cause anxiety in social settings that involve food.
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A person with body dysmorphic disorder becomes so concerned about flaws in their appearance, however minimal or imaginary, that they feel real distress. It can have a significant impact on their daily life, and they may avoid going out or social occasions.
first three community cards in texas hold'em can affect both males and females. Because it’s most common in teenagers and young adults, it can be difficult to spot. After all, this is an age when physical appearance can be especially important anyway. Warning signs could include obsessive behaviour around mirrors, grooming, or continually researching cosmetic procedures. It may involve constantly seeking reassurance about an aspect of appearance.
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We compared how many people are using Google to look for support with eating disorders in April 2021, compared with April 2020.
50%
increase in Google searches for 'binge eating'
82%
more searches for 'orthorexia', an obsession with pure eating
22%
growth in searches for body 'dysmorphia' (anxiety about appearance)
122%
increase in searches for 'anorexia'
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Our research shows a significant increase in Google searches relating to eating disorders this year, compared to 2020. Here are some of the reasons why food, and eating difficulties, have become more of an issue for children and young people during COVID-19.
- The pandemic has led to increased anxiety and stress. Some children and teenagers respond by eating more, or restricting their food intake.
- Huge changes to their usual routine have been very disruptive for children and young people.
- During lockdown, many children and teenagers have turned to social media to pass the time. Increased social media use puts them at risk from unhelpful and negative social media messages, which can fuel any existing mental health struggles.
- Lockdown has meant that those with existing disordered eating habits have constant access to food.
- If you’ve spent more time than usual with your child or teenager, you may have noticed eating habits that you hadn’t previously observed.
UK average monthly search volume for eating disorders on Google
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