5 Ways to Help Reduce your Child's Risk of Developing an Eating Disorder

Eating disorders are the second most common chronic medical condition during adolescence with the second highest mortality risk of any mental illness.  That being said, families can absolutely help reduce the risk of their child or teen developing an unhealthy relationship with food.  Here are 5 things your family can do to help reduce the risk for a disordered relationship with food, as adapted from the American Academy of Pediatrics:

1.     Discourage Dieting

Dieting is the # 1 risk factor for developing an eating disorder.  Dieting is any form of calorie or food restriction with the intention of controlling weight.  Dieting is really common and often normalized so we don’t ever realize it’s happening.  If your child or teen states the want to change their eating habits in an effort to lose weight, that is a diet and should be questioned.  While not all diets lead to eating disorders, most eating disorders start off as diets

2.     Increase Family Meals

We are all busy and running in a million different directions so coming together as a family for meals can feel tough.  And it’s a really great opportunity to check in on our kids and have some time together special in our busy lives.  Also, research shows that family meals can be protective against many disordered eating behaviors.

3.     Discourage Weight Talk

Weight talk is negative or disparaging comments made about bodies, including your own body.  Kids are really perceptive and watching their parents talk badly about their bodies can contribute to kids talking negatively about their own bodies.  The good news is, having a positive relationship with your own body can help protect your kids!

4.     Discourage Weight Teasing

Weight stigma is everywhere.  Weight stigma is the negative associations of people based on their size.  Weight based bully/teasing is the most common form of bullying now and while we can’t control what happens elsewhere, we can be really careful to not tease our kids or other family members about their weights.  If your child reports being bullied at school or elsewhere, immediately address it. 

5.     Support a Healthy Body Image

It’s hard to have a body in this society when there are so many message about how we should look and kids are exposed to so many messages on social media and elsewhere that can contribute to a poor body image.  The good news is that parents and families can help foster a more positive body image by reading books about body diversity and watching shows or movies with more diverse bodies, recognizing the issues and discussing them.  Parents can serve as positive examples and role models by not associating worth with physical appearance.

Still have questions about how to help protect your child?  Or perhaps you are realizing maybe you might need some additional support on your own relationship with food or your body and Simple Nutrition is here to help!  Click here to schedule a free 20 minute a Discovery Call with Laura to learn more.