by Annie Ruckman |

Everyone sees it on television, the constant blur of diet pill commercials and so-called miracle diets that claim to shed pounds overnight. Media is a blessing and a curse when it comes to self image. It causes many people to compare themselves with the “perfect” bodies on the screen and then decide if they add up. The media’s unreal images are one of the many reasons for the growing population of deaths each year that are related to eating disorders and behaviors.

It is currently estimated by the Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness (AEDA) that 11 percent of high school students have been diagnosed with an eating disorder. When surveyed, 81 percent of students thought eating disorders were a problem at Liberty High School.

The most common kinds of eating disorders are anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia, the most common eating disorder, is when people  have such an extreme fear of gaining weight, that they starve themselves. A survey conducted of 121 Liberty High School students showed that 25 percent currently struggle with anorexia nervosa.

Similar to anorexia, bulimia is when someone suffers from binge eating and then proceeds to compensate for excessive eating by over-exercising or inducing vomiting to prevent weight gain. Another common eating disorder is binge eating. Occurring  mostly in males, binge eating is similar to bulimia in that a person will eat in excessive amounts and then not eat for a certain period of time or excessively exercise.

Eating disorders are a serious and fatal issue facing teens today, claiming 50,000 lives in one year, AEDA states. This inner battle is due to the desire to be similar to what is deemed the “perfect image”. No matter the gender, many face the pressures to fit a certain expectation.

“It seems every commercial has to do with body image,” nurse Michelle Kist said

No person is perfect, but in a society that demands perfection, it causes many students to take matters into their own hands in a negative way. In boys, binge-eating is common for male eating disorders; a study conducted by Cornell University found that 40 percent of male football players surveyed engaged in some sort of disordered eating behavior.

Eating disorders are more common in girls because of the pressure to fit in. However, many other reasons can also trigger an eating disorder, such as family, friend problems and recent stress. One in five girls is estimated to have an eating disorder according to AEDA. Women struggling with an eating disorder are 12 times more likely to die than other women her age without.

To learn more about eating disorders and ways to help yourself or your friends, go to www.nationaleatingdisorders.org, or your assigned counselor in the Guidance Office.