There are a wide range of risk factors for eating disorders including social, personality and family factors that I’ve discussed before, but I’ve not discussed one of the most obvious ones. Weight loss. You might think that weight loss is a symptom of rather than a precursor to anorexia and in many cases you’d be absolutely right. But it is also not uncommon for healthy weight loss to go on to trigger an eating disorder.

Diets can go too far

As you’ll be well aware, it is very common for young people to diet. Occasionally a young person will successfully stick to a diet and may end up taking their diet too far which can result in the development of an eating disorder.

Positive feedback

One of the reasons that diets occasionally get taken too far and go beyond healthy weight loss is because of the positive feedback that dieters receive. Particularly if they were noticeably overweight to start with they are likely to receive a large amount of positive feedback from family and peers about their new healthier appearance. Everyone likes to be complimented so it’s not really surprising that looking for continued positive reinforcement, young dieters continue on their mission to lose more weight.

Overweight pupils can become clinically anorexic

The more overweight a student was to start with, the more likely they are to receive positive feedback about their weight loss, particularly in the current social climate which is actively ‘anti-obese’. A previously overweight pupil who embarks on a weight loss programme may find themselves at a healthy weight within a few months. Many will stop at this point but not all, as for a minority by the time they have battled their way to a healthy weight they may be hooked on watching their weight decrease, absolutely convinced that the thinner they are the more people like and respect them and relishing feeling in control of their weight for the first time in years. In these instances, if the weight loss continues, it’s perfectly possible for a pupil who was previously clinically obese to fall within diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa within the space of an academic year.

Bullied pupils and binge eaters are more vulnerable

Pupils who have been previously bullied about their weight or appearance are particularly at risk of developing an eating disorder following weight loss due to having been taught to see their weight and shape as an important means of self-evaluation by their bullies. Young people whose weight had increased due to binge eating and/or emotional eating (again this is often the result of bullying) are more susceptible to developing bulimia or anorexia than their peers as they already have a very unhealthy relationship with food. It is very common for people who recover from one eating disorder to develop a different one as the psychology underlying each disorder is essentially the same although the resulting food related behaviours are very different.

Weight loss should be supported

This doesn’t mean that no young person should ever embark on a weight loss diet and it is particularly important that pupils who are very overweight are supported to return to a healthy weight. However, this should always be done with the full support of their family and a GP, dietician or other professional.

What you can do

Keep an eye on any young person who has lost a considerable amount of weight, even if they are still currently overweight, and remain vigilant for eating disorder warning signs.

You might find the following posts useful:

What’s the difference between a diet and an eating disorder?

Weight change – the ultimate eating disorder warning sign