Their existence was long-ago exposed. Parents were warned to take proactive steps, and teens were warned to stay away. Despite that, pro-anorexia and pro-bulimia web sites are as prevalent now as ever, still posing a serious threat to anyone who struggles with - or is at risk of developing - an eating disorder.

"As it survives online and increasingly underground, this movement poses serious public health challenges. As many as 70 percent of adolescent girls seek health information online. Of adolescent girls viewing pro-ana sites, 96 percent reported learning new weight loss or purging techniques; 69 percent of these viewers reported using these weight-reduction strategies."

So what's a parent to do? The strongest recommendation is to install an electronic filtering system that blocks access to specific web sites or content. The less access adolescents have to these sites the better. And if a site's popularity decreases enough, it may go away altogether.

Labels: pro-ana, prevention

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Are teens that are shy or hesitant about eating in public on the path to developing a full-blown eating disorder? Some experts say it's a possibility. Others say that, even if a teen doesn't develop a diagnosable eating disorder, serious health problems like malnutrition can still occur.

"Bernarod Carducci, director of Indiana University Southeast's Shyness Research Institute, calls it the Scarlett O'Hara syndrome. In a famous scene in Gone with the Wind, Scarlett's maid tells her not to eat at a barbeque if she wants to uphold her reputation."

James Mitchell, president of the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute in Fargo, N.D. feels that current national concerns about obesity cause this non-specified eating disorder to go unnoticed. Leslie Lipton, who once struggled with eating in public, cautions that girls need to seek treatment early.

Read more at USAToday.com.

Labels: awareness, prevention, shyness

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Nese Halil is living proof that the fashion industry is finally beginning to re-think its "size zero" mentality. Nese, who is a size 16, will be working the catwalk for London's fashion week, which kicks off tomorrow. She thinks it's important for girls to appreciate whatever body type they have.

"...29-year-old Nese, who is in Scotland next week for a fashion show, is living proof if you actually learn to love your curves you can still earn a fortune as a model and stay healthy. Nese says: There's too much pressure on young girls to be a certain shape or size. They should be allowed to enjoy life, enjoy food and let go. It's about being in shape, looking good and feeling healthy."

Nese was this summer's Special K girl, and was at the center of the company's ad campaigns promoting healthy living. She eats healthy and works out, not to be skinny she says, but to "be toned and keep a good shape."

North Star Center's addiction recovery programs help young adults with adolescent substance abuse issues by offering a sober living environment.

Labels: fashion, healthy_eating, body_type

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Teens who eat dinners with their families are more likely to eat fruit and vegetables when they hit their twenties, according to a new study by the University of Minnesota. The study involved surveying 1500 people when they were in high school and again at age 20.

The 20-year-olds who ate evening meals with their families during adolescence had higher intakes of calcium, magnesium, potassium and fiber, and drank fewer soft drinks. This study appears in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

Find help for parents of troubled teens at ByParents-ForParents.com.

Labels: family, students, healthy_eating

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

People who fear appearance-based rejection are more likely to engage in disordered eating and exercise habits. Dr. Lora Park, a psychologist at the University of Buffalo - New York, developed the Appearance-Based Rejection Scale (ARS) to measure the level of anxiety people fear when they expect to be rejected based on their looks.

"She tested the scale on 242 college students, and found that people with high ARS scores were likely to base their self-worth on outward appearance and to rate themselves as physically unattractive...'Both men and women who reported being more sensitive to appearance-based rejection were preoccupied with their body and weight in unhealthy ways,' Park said..."

Park also found that close ties to friends and family, and self-affirming thoughts, seemed to act as "buffers" against the fear of appearance-based rejection.

Middle school girls who find themselves lost and unable to make good decisions can learn how to handle their emotions and actions at junior boarding schools like New Leaf Academy.

Labels: body_image, apperances, rejection

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Some girls who struggle with eating disorders think that pro-anorexic sites help them feel better about their disorder and their obsession with weight and appearance. But investigators from the University of Missouri in Columbia have discovered that the opposite is true.

"After looking at the anorexia-promoting Web site, young women had worse moods, worse social self-esteem, and a worse sense of their ability to cope with their appearance than those who viewed one of the other two websites [on fashion and home décor]. They also thought of themselves as heavier and said they were more likely to exercise and think about their weight in the near future."

In light of these results, the study's authors suggest that parents closely monitor the websites their children view, consider blocking pro-anorexia websites and keeping a "family" computer in an open area of the house.

Struggling girls boarding schools, like Copper Canyon Academy in Arizona, offer a combination of therapy and academics to help teenage girls get back on track.

Labels: self-esteem, pro-ana, body_image

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

The island nation of Malta has launched an eating disorder awareness campaign, in an attempt to promote awareness, prevention and treatment. Called "Taste Freedom", the campaign was launched on September 7th at a breakfast meeting.

"Guest speaker Professor Bob Palmer... tackled the subject from a wider perspective. 'Eating disorders have an "image problem". They are often portrayed as either an exotic rarity afflicting and sometimes killing young women at the threshold of lives that had been full of promise or as the expression of the foolishness of adolescent girls who take to excess the essentially trivial concerns with appearance and slimness that are widespread in our societies. Neither picture is accurate. Eating disorders are neither rare nor trivial."

Medical professionals, nutritionists, counselors, media personalities and student body representatives were all invited to participate in the breakfast.

The best boarding schools are listed at BoardingSchoolsInfo.com. Find one for you child today.

Labels: treatment, awareness, prevention

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

When someone can't control a craving for alcohol or drugs, it's called "addiction". Could these same physiological forces be at work in someone who has uncontrollable food cravings? Some scientists are beginning to wonder.

"'Are there certain things in food that act on the brain and set up a classic addictive process, like tolerance, withdrawal and craving?', asks psychologist Kelly Brownell, who organized a recent scientific meeting on food addiction at Yale University. While the research is still scanty, the evidence that exists 'is extremely interesting and provocative, and suggests to me that something is there,' Brownell says."

Though there is still much research to be done, scientists are unsure what to do if they find evidence for food addictions. Someone who's addicted to drugs or alcohol simply stops consuming them, but someone who's addicted to food can't simply stop eating. Read more at WashingtonPost.com.

Teenage drug addiction is a serious matter facing many families. Visit DrugRehabTreatment.com to learn more.

Labels: research, brain_chemistry, addiction

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

The Bratz line of dolls has four main characters, all girls, who don the latest, sexy fashions and receive almost constant criticism from parents who feel the dolls are too sexy. Several studies have found that over-sexualized images such as these reinforce unhealthy behaviors, like eating disorders, in young girls.

"Criticism was building even before several studies mentioned Bratz dolls by name. This year, the American Psychological Association piled on, citing Bratz in a report that analyzed about 300 studies on the relationship between media images and mental health."

Many parents try, instead, to buy dolls with more wholesome images, like the wildly popular American Girls line.

New Leaf Academy, private middle school for girls, helps struggling girls ages 10-14 with therapy and accredited academics.

Labels: behaviors, influences, role_models

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

The obesity prevention program called 5-2-1-Go! emphasizes not only healthy eating, but active living. It urges its middle school participants to eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables, limit "screen time" (TV or computer) to two hours a day and get at least one hour of physical activity per day. It also appears to reduce tendencies for disordered eating.

"The study showed that almost 4% of middle-school girls receiving only their regular health education began vomiting or abusing laxatives or diet pills, but just 1% of the girls in the 5-2-1-Go! program did so."

The randomized study involved over 1,400 students from 13 Massachusetts middle schools whose exercise and eating habits were tracked for two years.

Labels: exercise, prevention, healthy_eating

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Just in time for New York's Fashion Week, Gov. Eliot Spitzer has signed into law a bill that can help with the identification and prevention of eating disorders. The focus of the bill is the entertainment industry.

"As a result of the Governor's action, a Child Performers Advisory Board will be created oversee the development of guidelines to ensure that child actors suffering from or at risk for eating disorders are identified and have access to treatment. Appointed by the Commissioner of Labor, along with the Commissioners of Health and Mental Health, board members will also develop educational materials to generate awareness and inform actors and models about eating disorders."

The new legislation also requires that licensing regulations be established for residential treatment centers which serve the needs of people with eating disorders.

Labels: legislation, awareness, prevention

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Just in time for New York's Fashion Week, Gov. Eliot Spitzer has signed into law a bill that can help with the identification and prevention of eating disorders. The focus of the bill is the entertainment industry.

"As a result of the Governor's action, a Child Performers Advisory Board will be created oversee the development of guidelines to ensure that child actors suffering from or at risk for eating disorders are identified and have access to treatment. Appointed by the Commissioner of Labor, along with the Commissioners of Health and Mental Health, board members will also develop educational materials to generate awareness and inform actors and models about eating disorders."

The new legislation also requires that licensing regulations be established for residential treatment centers which serve the needs of people with eating disorders.

Labels: legislation, awareness, prevention

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

The transition into adolescence is difficult for most girls. As their hormones change and bodies begin to develop, they become more aware of how they look - not only to themselves, but to other people.

"The National Institute on Media and the Family estimates that 53 percent of 13-year-olds are unhappy with their body image. Research shows girls with negative self-esteem are more likely to be depressed or anxious and practice unhealthy behaviors, like smoking, poor eating habits, dieting and/or eating disorders."

Nutritionist Stacey Antine, R.D., teaches a class for 8th graders called the Natural Beauty Workshop. The purpose is to show girls the benefits of healthy eating. The class also provides the girls an opportunity to discuss ways that the media influences their ideas of beauty and health. Read more at WSOCTV.com.

New Leaf Academy offers junior boarding schools for middle school girls who are having a hard time transitioning to adolescence.

Labels: body_image, hormones, puberty

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Until recently, doctors associated anorexia with teenage, Caucasian girls who succumbed to the pressure to be "perfect". But the increasing diversity of anorexic patients is causing doctors to question its origin.

"Seven years ago 'the idea of seeing a 9- or would have been 10-year-old anorexic would have been shocking and prompted frantic calls to my colleagues. Now were seeing kids this age all the time,' [David] Rosen says. There's no single explanation for the declining age of onset, although greater awareness on the part of parents certainly plays a role."

Because the pre-teen and early teen years are a critical growth period for children, anorexia can be especially damaging to a young person's health. Debilitating conditions like low blood pressure, decreased heart function and drops in testosterone or estrogen can affect children within months. Read more at MSNBC.com.

New Leaf Academy is a private boarding school for middle school girls. Young girls' potential is impacted by their early-stage emotional and developmental needs. Learn more about their private school for girls.

Labels: anorexia, young_girls, development

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Nikki Grahame may not be as famous in the United States as she is in the United Kingdom, but her struggle with anorexia is a lesson for people around the world. One of the stars of Big Brother 7, Grahame was hospitalized as a child and even slipped into a coma because of her illness. Now, she's admitted that she's unable to have children.

"She told OK! Magazine: 'I might adopt because I can't have children, because of all the internal damage I've done to myself with the anorexia. I found out about it a while ago and it is a shame. It's inevitable though, with anorexia.'"

Grahame has also been diagnosed with osteoporosis, a condition that's usually found in people who are much older. Read more at DigitalSpy.co.uk.

Therapeutic boarding schools, like Bromley Brook School, offer accredited academics and counseling to help students deal with behaviors that may be preventing them from growing into a healthy adult. Learn more about Bromley Brook private boarding schools for girls.

Labels: anorexia, effects_of_eating_disorders, infertility

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 2 Comments

The Renfrew Center, which first opened in Philadelphia in 1985, has opened a new facility in Brentwood, Tennessee. Treatment plans focus not just on the physical, but other factors that may exacerbate an eating disorder.

"Jessica Samford Conley, director of the Brentwood facility, explained the Renfrew Centers three-pronged approach. Patients at the center interface with psychiatrists, therapists, and nutritionists."

Psychiatrists work to determine if patients are struggling with any other issues or disorders such as anxiety or depression. Therapists help the patients discuss problems, and nutritionists help patients become more comfortable with food. Read more at Tennessean.com.

Labels: treatment, support, therapy

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments