Keeping Kids Healthy and Free from Eating Disorders

Experts say that more kids than ever suffer from eating disorders, but the real problem may have nothing to do with food. Here are some warning signs that can tell you a child is in danger, and what parents can do to help keep children healthy. Twelve-year old Leslie Pierce remembers the day, two years ago, when she decided to stop eating food. "I felt terrible. I just came home crying, I just felt like I couldn't do it anymore. I was just depressed," Leslie recalled. Phil and Barb Pierce are Leslie's parents. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't force their daughter to eat. This escalated into a long, heart-wrenching battle. "I wanted to eat it, I just couldn't,” Leslie said. “I looked at it and thought that would be good. I'd try to put it in my mouth, but I just couldn't put it in." Phil said, "If we would have left her, she wouldn't pick anything up. She wouldn't drink water or anything. It was scary." After two months, Leslie's condition went from scary to almost deadly, as she got down to a skeletal 52 pounds. "We admitted her into the psychiatric hospital, and they gave her 48 hours to do it on her own,” Barb said. “Within those 48 hours she lost a few more pounds, and her medical team, they advised us that if we do not get a feeding tube in her in the next five days, she probably would be gone." Desperate for answers, the Pierce’s started digging for information about eating disorders, normally associated with women and teens, not 10-year-old girls. Their search led them to Wickenburg, Arizona. Located some 50 miles from the hustle and bustle of Phoenix, Wickenburg is a place known for its postcard-like sunsets and resort-like surroundings. But Wickenburg is more than just a beautiful place. Girls like Leslie come here from around the world to go to Remuda Ranch, the leading treatment center for women and girls suffering from eating disorders. Remuda's settings are less clinical and more homelike. But what distinguishes them most is that their program is based on biblical values. Dr. Brenda Woods is director of primary medicine at Remuda. “Rather than have a nebulous spirituality, which so many programs will advertise, we really help the patient focus on her relationship with Jesus Christ," Dr. Woods said. One of the programs that Remuda offers is its popular horse riding therapy, which is used to teach the girls about God's unconditional love. Leslie’s mom said, "As Leslie was learning how to control the horse, she was also earning how to control her disorder. It was very unique just to see this Leslie that was kind of hiding for all these months underneath this eating disorder, starting to come back to this bright, bubbly happy girl, again working with this large animal." Amy Gerberry is the coordinator at Remuda's children's facility. She said the downward spiral of an eating disorder begins, in part, because children are targeted with messages and products that promote dissatisfaction with their body image. "The pressure to diet is increasing everywhere -- at home, at school, in the media, and it's happening at younger and younger ages," said Gerberry. According to the National Eating Disorders Association, 42 percent of 1stthrough 3rd grade girls want to be thinner. Eighty percent of pre-teen girls are dieting, and those who diet are eight times more likely to develop an eating disorder. But Gerberry said eating disorders in children are often about much more than food and body image, as was the case with Leslie. Gerberry said, "Patients are struggling with peer issues, being teased, conflicts at home, and not being able to have an outlet to share their feelings." Woods said parents should be on the lookout for signs of eating disorders in their children, including: weight loss, increased exercise, increased isolation, and a decreased desire to participate in social activities. "We see a high degree of anxiety in our children,” said Woods. “We see obsessive compulsive disorder, and we see a lot of depression." As for Leslie, she finished the 60-day in-patient program at Remuda about a year and a half ago. Today, food is no longer the enemy. Asked what her favorite foods were, Leslie replied, "I like pizza, spaghetti, chicken, steak." Remuda's success rates are significantly higher than similar programs. Woods says there's a reason for that. "We try to get the patient to see herself the way Christ sees her, we're trying to get her to see herself through God's eyes," she said. When Leslie’s parents were asked if they thought Remuda saved Leslie's life, her mom said, "Definitely…we thank God all the time for Remuda Ranch and how it changed, how it saved our daughter."