Without their parents’ knowledge, many adolescents with diagnosed eating disorders are visiting Web sites that encourage anorexia and bulimia, according to a study in the journal Pediatrics last month.

“Parents of pro-eating-disorder Web site users were more likely to know about these sites” – which provide “thinspiration” (images of extremely thin women) and reinforce disordered eating habits – than other parents, said Rebecka Peebles, one of the study’s authors and an instructor in adolescent medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine. “Still, over half the parents of these pro-eating-disorder Web site users didn’t know their own kids were on these sites.”

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Dec. 18, 2006 (Newsweek)
If a food craving strikes, try a manicure to “keep your hands occupied.”
This kind of tip is common fare on pro-”ana” (anorexia) and pro-”mia” (bulimia) Web sites. Well intended or not, they’re not “benign,” says Dr. Rebecka Peebles of Stanford University, coauthor of “Surfing for Thinness,” published in Pediatrics last week. Stanford researchers surveyed patients treated for eating disorders, ages 10 to 22, and found that users of pro-eating-disorder sites were sick longer. And 96 percent of them reported learning new tips for weight loss or purging; 69 percent said they used them.

The sites tend to gloss over bad news: people with anorexia are 56 times more likely than their peers to commit suicide. (And they’re not broadcasting the November anorexia-related death of Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston.)

Sites deny being harmful, saying they provide a community for those with eating disorders. The term “pro-ana” is broadly used, and sites vary greatly. “We offer them support, saying, ‘It will be. Continue going to your doctor’,” says five-foot, 89-pound proana.us owner Anna Robbins.

In November, the Academy for Eating Disorders suggested a mandatory warning statement: “Warning: anorexia nervosa is a potentially deadly illness. The site you are about to enter provides material that may be detrimental to your health.”

—Karen Springen

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CBSNews is also talking about thinspiration and sites: “Kids Learn Harmful Behavior From Pro-Eating-Disorder Web Sites And Recovery Web Sites”

Teens with eating disorders are picking up dangerous tips from both pro-eating-disorder Web sites and sites designed to treat the problem, according to a new study.

And though most of their parents know about the pro-eating-disorder Web sites, few sit down and talk to their kids about them.

The so-called “pro-Ana” Web sites — shorthand for pro-anorexia — offer tips on extreme weight loss and purging. They suggest that believing one can’t be too thin is a lifestyle choice, not an eating disorder. The sites often offer strategies for avoiding detection by parents and doctors when purging. Site forums allow teens with eating disorders to share tips and offer support.

These sites usually carry “thinspiration” pictures — sometimes shocking images of extremely thin young people.

How much do teens with eating disorders and their parents know about these sites? In an effort to find out, researchers surveyed families of patients age 10-22 treated at Stanford University’s Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital.
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