Experts across the United States have reported a marked increase in the amount of adolescent patients they are treating for eating disorders that first arose during the height of the pandemic, reports the WSJ.
“Experts say they have seen the biggest increase during the past year in anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder where people deprive themselves of food.”
In a recently published study hospitalisation rates more than tripled in the last year at Boston Children’s Hospital with the amount of patients seeking medical attention increasing from three or four patients a week to more now more than ten. As many as 16 patients a week are seeking inpatient treatment while outpatient treatments have increased to around 23 cases a week from an average of just six.
Basma O’Neill’s 15-year-old daughter was one of those affected by the isolation brought on by the pandemic. Her daughter has always been lean but had a healthy appetite, following the pandemic she spent much of her time alone in her room and ate at different times to the rest of her family. She dropped down from 118 pounds (54 kgs) to just 86 pounds (39 kgs).
In January she was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa. Her mother wholeheartedly believes her daughters anorexia was brought on by social isolation.
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