1. Photos by Jaci Berkopec

2.  1 in 5 women will struggle with an eating
disorder.
 10 million Americans currently suffer from
eating disorders.
 90% of women with eating disorders are
between the ages of 15 and 25.
 While eating disorders are typically
associated with women, there are currently
over one million men also suffering from an
eating disorder.

4. A person suffering from anorexia
is 12 times more likely to die than
other women her age.
of anorexics will die within
ten years of onset and 18-20%
percent die within twenty years of
onset.
20% of people suffering from
anorexia die from medical
complications directly connected to
their eating disorder, including
suicide and heart problems.

5. Disease Frequency Research Funds
Eating Disorders 10 million 12,000,000
Alzheimer's 4.5 million 647,000,000
Schizophrenia 2.2 million 350,000,000

6.  Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 lets
insurance companies decide how to cover
inpatient and outpatient care
 Insurance companies view anorexia and
bulimia as behavioral disorders as opposed to
biological disorders.
 Anorexia and bulimia are not classified as
serious mental disorders.

7.  Anorexia and bulimia fall under the
qualifications of a serious mental illness.
New scientific evidence showing
anorexia and bulimia are biological
disorders.
The average treatment can cost up to
$30,000 a month. Without insurance,
people can’t afford the help they
desperately need.

8. According to the Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration, a
serious mental disorder is defined as
“persons age 18 and over, who currently or
at any time during the past year, have had a
diagnosable mental, behavioral, or
emotional disorder of sufficient duration to
meet diagnostic criteria specified within the
[DSM-IV], resulting in functional impairment
which substantially interferes with or limits
one or more major life activities.”
Anorexia and bulimia are clearly serious
mental disorders. During a recent study,
eating disorder patients described their
quality of life as poor and “after 2 years of
treatment and follow-up, ED (eating
disorder) patients were still more
dysfunctional in all areas of life than women
of the general population.” This clearly fits
the definition of a serious mental illness
causing interference with life activities and
functional impairment.

9.  Recent studies on twins estimate that 50-83% of the
variation in anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are
accounted for by genetic factors. Certain chromosomes
have been identified through these genetic studies.
Chromosomes 1, 4, and 10 have what are called “risk
genes.”
 Serotonin levels, neurotransmitters involved in food
intake, are also linked to eating disorders. Studies on
people suffering from anorexia and bulimia showing altered
serotonin levels which lead to altered appetites, mood,
impulse control, energy, and metabolism.
Mood and anxiety disorders are also known to shadow
eating disorders. Anxiety disorder aids and abets anorexia
into developing and major depression follows after recovery
while personality disorders, major depression, anxiety
disorder, and substance use disorders are commonly found
amid bulimia patients. 80% of anorexia and bulimia patients
will be diagnosed with another psychiatric disorder in their
lifetime.