Facts and Links:
- According to a recent University of California study, 51% of 9-year-olds and 81% of 10-year-olds are experienced dieters. On the flip side, according to the Centers for Disease Control, 15-23% of children are classified as obese.
- The prevalence of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa among girls between the ages of ten and nineteen places eating disorders among the most common chronic illnesses of adolescent girls.
- In the United States, eating disorders are more common than Alzheimer’s disease (10 million people have eating disorders compared to 4 million with Alzheimer’s disease).
- An estimated 1,000 young women die each year of anorexia nervosa.