University of Virginia issued the following announcement on Nov. 3
A peer-reviewed study out of the British Journal of Psychiatry suggests that eating disorder diagnoses increased 15% in 2020 among people under 30 compared to previous years. Researchers believe the increase is due to disruptions in daily living brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown, among other factors. University of Virginia pediatrician Dr. Julia F. Taylor and UVA psychotherapist Sara Groff Stephens described three groups of young people who are often overlooked when it comes to eating disorders in a piece written for The Conversation and reposted below.
Taylor and Stephens specialize in treating eating disorders in teens and young adults. They write that they have seen an increased demand for eating disorder services in their own clinic over the past year-and-a-half. Here’s what they had to say in The Conversation.
Eating disorders began to spike among young people shortly after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Experts believe the increase occurred due to disruptions in daily living, emotional distress and more time spent on social media – which research has shown can lead to lower self-esteem and negative body image.
One peer-reviewed study indicates that eating disorder diagnoses increased 15% in 2020 among people under 30 compared to previous years. Other studies have suggested that patients who already had an eating disorder diagnosis got worse during the pandemic. The researchers reported an increase in eating disorder symptoms along with anxiety and depression.
Original source can be found here.
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