Eating Disorders A Deadly Path To Perfection
The road to perfection can be a deadly one. One Canadian woman began abusing diet pills at the age of 13. By the time she was 26 she was starving herself to death to lose the weight left after her baby was born. Sound like a story you have heard before? You might want to pay attention so if anyone you know sounds like this they may have an eating disorder.
Ironically, substance abuse seems to play a large role in eating disorders.
Bellwood Health Study
“Bellwood Health Services in Toronto reports that substance abuse is listed as a concurrent problem for fully 52 per cent of the 225 patients they’ve admitted for eating disorders. At 64 per cent, alcohol is the most commonly abused substance by patients with an eating disorder, followed by cocaine at 37 per cent, marijuana at 28 per cent and prescription drugs at 27 per cent.”
Conclusion
Specialists believe that the eating disorder is the beginning of an addiction that can often escalate to substance abuse addictions. They say, “Food acts as a gateway drug. It’s the only substance available to a child.”
Eating Disorder Self Test. Take the EAT-26 self test to see if you might have eating disorder symptoms that might require professional evaluation. All answers are confidential.