Introduction
Adolescent females are at higher risk of developing eating disorders than boys due to various factors such as pressure to look beautiful and psychological problems. Data shows that 90% of those suffering from eating disorders are women, with 2-3% of teenage females developing bulimia and 1% developing anorexia. The most common eating disorders among adolescent girls include anorexia nervosa, binge eating disorder, bulimia nervosa, subthreshold BED, and subthreshold AN. About 40% to 60% of girls between the ages of 6-12 years in the elementary school are concerned about becoming overweight (healthyteenproject, 2015), while 36% of adolescent girls believe are overweight, and 59% are already trying to lose weight (WebMD, 2015). Approximately 1-3% of all adolescent females in the US struggle with bulimia nervosa (Manley, 2012).
Studies show that 5% to 20% of college females are struggling with eating disorders (Walden Center, 2016). College girls have more freedom to choose what and when to take meals while struggling to cope with a busy academic schedule, hence triggering the problem in those predisposed to developing an eating disorder. Conversely, in college, young girls are preoccupied with their body image and the feelings of powerlessness in controlling weight may force them to adopt severe weight control behaviors such vomiting, skipping meals, and fasting. The health cost of eating disorders among adolescents is high, ranging from 1,288US$ to 8,042 US$ per year hence the need for prevention (Stuldreher et al., 2012).
Current approaches focus more on the treatment of the disorders rather than prevention. The available treatment practices included nutritional interventions, counselling, medications, and physical exercises. Counselling aims to resolve psychological misconceptions such as feelings of inadequacy, and low self-esteem, whereas medications target mental disorders such as depression and prolonged loss of appetite.
As noted, most interventions focus on the treatment of eating disorders, but few have been developed for prevention. This means that adolescent girls have fewer tools at their disposal to help them recognize, prevent, and avoid triggers. Lack of knowledge and information is the major shortcoming in prevention measures and as such, there is a greater need to raise awareness among young people. It is based on this realization that this paper proposes a prevention approach base for creating awareness about eating disorders among adolescent girls. Items of focus include:
The expected outcome of this project includes:
Increase the level of knowledge among adolescent girls on factors associated with the disorder
Equip girls with knowledge that can help them recognize when at risk of developing the problem
Help girls develop the ability to identify triggers
Increase knowledge on measures that should be taken by those at risk and those affected
Awareness curriculums for each of the identified items will be created. Information will be developed in medical research projects and integration of expert opinion from various professionals. The information will be published and distributed to adolescent girls in schools. Additionally, girl-workshops will be arranged where details will be explained. Finally, a website will be made to increase accessibility and availability of the information to all young girls. Campaigns will be created through the social media where girls will be encouraged to attend workshops and visit the website.
References
healthyteenproject. (2015). Adolescent Eating Disorders such as Anorexia, Bulimia, and Binge Eating Disorders are treatable. Retrieved from The Healthy Teen Project: http://www.healthyteenproject.com/adolescent-eating-disorders-ca
Manley, R. S. (2012, October). Eating Disorders in Children and Adolescents. Retrieved from Keltyeatingdisorders: http://keltyeatingdisorders.ca/sites/default/files/Kelty_EatingDisorders_Oct2012_web_FINAL.pdf
Stuldreher, N., Konnopka, A., Wild, B., Herzog, W., Zipfel, S., Lowe, B., & Konig, H. (2012). Cost-of-illness studies and cost-effectiveness analyses in eating disorders: A systematic review. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 476-491.
Walden Center. (2016). Eating Disorders Among College Students. Retrieved from Walden center for education and research: http://www.waldencenter.org/popular-searches/eating-disorders-among-college-students/
WebMD. (2015). Understanding Eating Disorders in Teens. Retrieved from WebMD: http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/eating-disorders/understanding-eating-disorders-teens
