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Eating Disorder Self Test
Eating Disorder Self Test
If you feel you have an eating disorder, it’s important that you recognize it and get help early. This
may prevent you from developing a serious and perhaps fatal problem. The following “self test” was
developed to help you learn if you have an eating disorder. Take the time to answer each question
honestly and critically.
Once you finish our test, it’s a good idea to share your answers with a trusted adult, like your
parents. However, if you feel uncomfortable with talking to your parents or another adult, it’s very
important that you share these answers with your doctor. This is also a good test to take and
discuss with your doctor if you have been diagnosed with an eating disorder and want to learn more
about how it has affected you.
1. Do you think about food/eating a lot? Do you worry about what you eat (or don’t eat) and
talk about how fat you think you are?
2. Have you started to avoid eating socially with others? Have you started to avoid eating in
your home? For example, do you refuse to eat anything your parent(s) cook or just get a
diet cola at the mall at lunch while your friends share a pizza?
3. In your worry about your body image, have you started avoiding going to the pool or
wearing a bathing suit, wearing baggy clothes or developing excuses not to participate in
gym class.
4. Do you “diet” all the time? Do you latch onto any fad diet you see in a magazine?
5. Do you weigh yourself daily or more than once a day? Does being weighed make you
angry? Does it make you sad?
6. While exercise is great, and while most of us probably need more exercise, have you
become compulsive about exercising? Have you taken up a new form of exercise where
you feel guilty or punish yourself if you miss a session?
7. Have you become more withdrawn from your family? Have you become more withdrawn
from doing things with your friends?
8. Have you had a significant weight loss in the last two months, say more than 10 pounds?
9. Do you have fainting spells or dizziness all the time when you stand up?
10. If you are a female, have your menstrual periods become more irregular or have they
stopped?
11. Are you cold a lot? Has your hair thinned or been falling out?
12. If you binge (eat lots of food you think is “bad” food) how much do you eat during a binge?
Where does the binging occur? (When you are alone? With certain people when you’d
rather be somewhere else, doing something else, etc.)
13. Have you ever used vomiting, diet pills, laxatives or diuretics (water pills) to counteract
binging? (This action to counteract binging is called purging.)
14. If you have resorted to purging after binge eating, where does that purging occur? Does it
happen in your bathroom, school bathroom, etc.? How do you feel after purging?
15. Have you ever vomited up blood or had blood in your bowel movements
Examining Eating Disorders
Eating disorders are VERY common. In the U.S. approximately 0.3 to 3 percent of adolescent and
young adult females have an eating disorder and the incidence of eating disorders in this country
has doubled in the past 20 years. Eating disorders are not just a problem of women; approximately
5 to 15 percent of people affected with eating disorders are male.
Anorexia nervosa may be common in younger teenagers. Bulimia is more common in somewhat
older patients with eating disorders. Patterns of eating disorders may change with time. One may
start out an anorexic and swing into becoming a bulimic.
While osteoporosis is a disease of older adults (particularly women), in the medical community it is
often described as a pediatric disease that manifests itself in old age. According to physical therapist
Katleen DeMolli Shirley, "the number one prevention against osteoporosis is building maximum
bone density during childhood and adolescence. The greatest opportunity to maximize bone
strength occurs between the ages of 10 and 18."
Bone is not a hard and lifeless structure, but a complex living tissue. During the first 30 years of life
our bones are constantly building more bone and storing calcium. Then, as we grow older, old bone
tissue begins to break down faster than new bone can be produced. This bone loss is more
significant in women after menopause when their ovaries stop producing estrogen - a hormone that
protects against bone loss. The National Osteoporosis Foundation wants people to think of our
bones as a savings account. The more calcium you deposit in your bones before age 30, the more
that will be available when you get older. "Ninety percent of the peak bone mass is achieved during
this period of dramatic skeletal growth," says Shirley. "Nutrition, specifically calcium intake, and
exercise are the integral components of bone health." Some experts believe that young women can
increase their bone mass by as much as 20 percent - a critical factor in protecting against
osteoporosis later in life.
Calcium is a mineral found in the foods we eat and 99 percent of the calcium in our bodies is stored
in our teeth and bones. The National Institute of Health recommends that teens between ages 10
and 18 consume 1200-1500 mg of calcium (4-5 servings of calcium-rich foods) per day. These are
some examples of calcium-rich foods that supply 300 mg per serving: 1 cup milk, yogurt, or calcium-
enriched juice, ½ cup cottage cheese, 1 ½ oz. hard cheese (skim milk and low fat cheeses are good
low fat choices), 1 cup dark green leafy vegetables (collard, turnip greens, broccoli and kale), and 3
½ oz. canned sardines or salmon with bones. For those allergic to dairy products, soy products are
possible alternatives. Teens who don’t eat dairy or calcium-fortified foods can take calcium
supplements (500 mg twice a day).
Foods that deplete calcium or interfere with calcium absorption should be avoided. Some examples
include caffeinated drinks, excessive alcohol, protein, salt and sugar. Smoking also depletes calcium
and has been linked to a 50 percent increased risk of developing osteoporosis. To improve bone
health, you should focus on a balanced diet including calcium-rich foods and avoid prepackaged
processed foods.
Weight-bearing exercise, such as walking or stair climbing, will also help keep your bones strong.
Greater bone growth and bone mineralization has been associated with early vigorous exercise,
especially if it occurred in pre-adolescence and adolescence rather than in adulthood. Exercises
that will help build strong bones include walking, running, jump rope, gymnastics, tumbling, yoga
and bicycle riding. Swimming, although very healthy, is not a weight-bearing exercise.
The typical teenage life-style of fast food, diet drinks, playing video games or watching television
doesn’t promote bone health. Lack of exercise places you at great risk for developing osteoporosis.
Studies have shown that moderate physical activity CAN compensate for a low calcium diet, but a
diet high in calcium will NOT compensate for an inactive life-style
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