The Covid-19 pandemic has significantly worsened eating disorders in people already affected or at risk. According to one study published in the journal The Lancet Psychiatryin January 2022, the overall incidence of eating disorders increased by 15.3% during the pandemic in 2020, compared to previous years. This increase was mainly observed in women, more blatantly in adolescents and for anorexia nervosa.
To help a loved one who has an eating disorder (ED), do not harass them with questions or do not make value judgments. He is a person who is going through psychological difficulties and great suffering: be available, attentive and benevolent. By creating a relationship of trust, the person in pain will be able to confide more easily.
The National Eating Disorder Association has established lists of the main warning signs of TCA, those rather emotional and behavioral (mood swings, withdrawal from social life, discomfort eating with others…) and those purely physical (dry skin and hair, brittle nails, dizziness, fainting, discolored teeth. ..). Nevertheless, it is good to know that these symptoms can be very different depending on the patient.
Sources:
- Warning signs and symptoms, National Eating Disorder Association
- “The hidden burden of eating disorder during the Covid-19 pandemic”, The Lancet PsychiatryJanuary 2022
- “Family therapy for anorexia more effective than individual therapy, researchers find”Stanford Medicine, 2010
Read also:
- How to tell the difference between binge eating and bulimia?
- Anorexia: the pleasure of sport as strong as the pleasure of losing weight
- Testimonial: “Bulimic for 20 years, I got out of it”