More than 9 million young people in the United States have an eating disorder (Orr. p. 146). This is a big percentage of America's population. Anorexia and bulimia are becoming big problems in the United States because people bully those who are underweight.

When most people think about people with eating disorders, they think about teenagers, but here is an example of someone a bit older. A girl named Sandy was in her early thirties when she first became anorexic. She married a boy named Scott because she thought he could fix her. She ended up getting pregnant, so she could not stay anorexic, but after she gave birth, she became anorexic again. She weighed ninety-nine pounds! After that, Scott made her start eating, so she became bulimic. It got to the point where she was throwing up blood. Eventually she got help at a special clinic where she was treated for PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) for seventy-four days (Orr. p. 125 and p. 126). Who wants their life to end up like that?

Most people think about teenage girls when they think about eating disorders, but guys have them, too. According to Dr. Arnold Andersen, director of the Eating Disorders Service of the University of Iowa’s College of Medicine, the average anorexic male has the bones of an eighty-year-old man (Orr. p. 83). There is a boy named Danny who had an eating disorder. When Danny was thirteen, he had his appendix taken out. Something went wrong during the operation, so he was put to bed rest for several months. Also, his parents were going through a divorce, his mom had moved six times in one year, and his brother was doing drugs and running away. Danny was also being bullied because he weighed two hundred pounds at the beginning of eighth grade. Danny then became bulimic because of all the problems that were going on. He was bulimic for over three years. It got to the point where he could not stop purging. He went to a counselor, but it did not help very much because he had been bulimic for so long, his body had been trained to purge. They finally found a treatment that worked (Orr. p.84 to p.89). These are bad situations to be in and nobody would want to play Danny’s role.

The rate of anorexia and bulimia keeps rising, causing the bullying rates to increase. “Doctors mainly think the cause for anorexia/bulimia is a response to cultural, social, psychological, and biological influences unique to each person. They believe that people think anorexia is an effective way to cope with difficult circumstances because it distracts the sufferer from the pain”(Hall & Ostroff) This could be why people bully. People will bully because others are miserable and they show it. People may also become anorexic/bulimic because they have been bullied. “It is hard for anorexics to maintain body weight because people normally exercise more calories off than they eat,” (Eberly and Harken). These are many thinks that can cause anorexia/bulimia.

Anorexia and bulimia are similar and different from each other. “Unlike anorexics, bulimics can fall within the normal range for their age and height”(Bulimia Nervosa). Bulimia often causes injury to the esophagus (the tube connecting the stomach to the mouth) because of vomiting too much. It can also cause injury to the stomach due to binge eating (Anorexia and Bulimia). “Like People with anorexia, bulimics often fear gaining weight, want desperately to lose weight, and are intensely unhappy with their body size and shape” (Bulimia Nervosa). These are the reasons why anorexia and bulimia are both similar and different from each other.

There are not many things that we can do to help solve these problems. It is hard to prevent anorexia and bulimia because people do what they want with their body. We, as individuals, need to try to stand up to bullies and fix this problem. If we see anybody not eating, we should try to make them. If we see someone vomiting, ask them if it is because they are not feeling well. Make sure they are not anorexic or bulimic. Any one of these little things could save somebody’s life someday.

To conclude, many people are becoming anorexic or bulimic. Anorexia and bulimia are becoming big problems in the United States because people bully those who are underweight. Stand up to those bullies and make a stand. You may have just saved somebody’s life.




Works Cited


"ANAD." Bulimia Nervosa « « National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.

"Anorexia & Bulimia." AllAboutLifeChallenges.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.

Hall, Lindsey, and Monika Ostroff. "EATING DISORDERS." Why Do People Become Anorexic? N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2013.

Orr, Tamra. When the Mirror Lies: Anorexia, Bulimia, and Other Eating Disorders. Danbury, CT: Franklin Watts, 2007. Print.