Eating Disorder Myths and Facts
Approximately 9% of the US population will experience an eating disorder in their lifetime, and there are roughly 10,200 deaths from eating disorders every year. We wanted to bring to light some of the myths around eating disorders, so that we can provide education and awareness around how to recognize, help, and de-stigmatize eating disorders. There is a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding around eating disorders, which can harm people experiencing eating disorders, and deter people from seeking help. Read on for 4 common myths about eating disorders, and what the truth actually is.
Myth:You can tell someone has an eating disorder just by looking at them
Fact: Did you know that less than 6% of people with an eating disorder are medically underweight? (Flament et al. 2015). This is one we want to shout from the rooftops, that you cannot tell who has an eating disorder just by looking at them. Bodies come in all shapes and sizes. Some people are naturally very thin, some people are fat, and the size of a person’s body indicates very little about their mental or physical health. Besides that, people with a higher body weight actually have a 2.45 times greater chance of engaging in disordered eating behaviors compared to people in a clinically normal weight range. Yet people with a higher body weight receive a clinical diagnosis about half as often as those who are in a normal weight range or underweight (Ramaswamy and Ramaswamy, 2023).
Myth: Eating disorders only occur in teenage girls and young white women
Fact: While eating disorders are more common in females, with approximately 8.6% of the female population having an eating disorder at some point in their lives, compared to 4.07% in males (Deloitte Access Economics, 2020). That being said, eating disorders are often missed in males due to stigma, and lack of understanding. Eating disorders in males are also increasing at a faster rate than females, with some population-based studies showing no difference in sex in the under 14 population (Gorrell and Murray, 2019). Not only that, but according to The North American Menopause Society, approximately 3.5% of women over the age of 40 meet full diagnostic criteria for an eating disorder. Perimenopause and menopause also bring with them a high risk for both developing a new eating disorder or relapsing, according to Sick Enough: A Guide to the Medical Complications of Eating Disorders and Undernutrition (Gaudiani, 2025).
Myth: Eating disorders are just about food
Fact: Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions. In our eating disorders practice, we often say “it is about food and it's not about food”. While eating disorders often manifest in control, rules, or rigidity around food, they are not simply about food. If they were, treatment would include a meal plan and recovery would be quick. Unfortunately, food is just a piece of eating disorders, but not the entire picture. That’s why eating disorders can often be missed, when subtle symptoms emerge that aren’t directly related to food. These can include feeling cold all the time, especially in the extremities, having difficulty concentrating or sleeping, excessive exercise, obsession with eating “clean,” avoiding social situations that involve food, and general gastrointestinal complaints. There are also many different types of eating disorders, which manifest in different ways. Recognition of an eating disorder and treatment involve food, but also so much more.
Myth: It’s uncommon for people to have other mental illnesses besides their eating disorder
Fact: Approximately 95% of people diagnosed with an eating disorder also receive a diagnosis for at least one other psychiatric disorder. The most common co-occurring mental health conditions with eating disorders include anxiety disorders (up to 62% of the eating disorder population), mood disorders including depression (up to 54%), obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (up to 27%), and substance use disorders (up to 27%) (Hambleton et al. 2022). The co-occurring conditions can compound eating disorder symptoms, and vice versa, so treating both conditions from an eating disorder lens, and having a good team is necessary for recovery. A support team that works collaboratively and understands the nuance needed in eating disorders and their co-occurring conditions is how recovery can be made possible.
If you have questions about these myths and facts, or other things you might have heard about eating disorders, we’d love to hear from you. Leave us a comment below or message us on Instagram. If you need help navigating an eating disorder for yourself or a loved one, please reach out to us.
Sources:
Deloitte Access Economics. The Social and Economic Cost of Eating Disorders in the United States of America: A Report for the Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders and the Academy for Eating Disorders. June 2020. Available at: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/striped/report-economic-costs-of-eating-disorders/.
Flament, M. F., Henderson, K., Buchholz, A., Obeid, N., Nguyen, H. N., Birmingham, M., & Goldfield, G. (2015). Weight Status and DSM-5 Diagnoses of Eating Disorders in Adolescents From the Community. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 54(5), 403–411.e2. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2015.01.020
Gorrell, S.,& Murray, S. B. (2019). Eating disorders in males. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 28(4), 641–651. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chc.2019.05.012
Hambleton, A., Pepin, G., Le, A., Maloney, D., Aouad, P., Barakat, S., Boakes, R. A., Brennan, L., Bryant, E., Byrne, S. M., Caldwell, B., Calvert, S., Carroll, B., Castle, D. J., Caterson, I. D., Chelius, B., Chiem, L., Clarke, S., Conti, J., . . . Maguire, S. (2022). Psychiatric and medical comorbidities of eating disorders: findings from a rapid review of the literature. Journal of Eating Disorders, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-022-00654-2
Ramaswamy, N., & Ramaswamy, N. (2023). Overreliance on BMI and Delayed Care for Patients With Higher BMI and Disordered Eating. AMA Journal of Ethics, 25(7), E540-544. https://doi.org/10.1001/amajethics.2023.540