All articles tagged with #eating disorders
Kaia Gerber opened up about the pressures of growing up in the public eye, revealing she has struggled with disordered eating and body-image scrutiny, often being compared to her mom Cindy Crawford. She emphasizes that negativity rarely helps mental health and is now focusing more on acting while keeping her private relationship with Lewis Pullman away from the spotlight, pushing back against being defined by her dating life.
The article uses Ariana Grande’s recent video controversy to frame John Early’s Maddie’s Secret as a blunt, accessible critique of eating disorders and the enabling culture surrounding fame. It follows Maddie’s relapse, hospitalisation, and treatment, highlighting how fans, peers, and industry pressures can normalize harmful behavior while masking illness, and argues the film opens a needed dialogue about body shaming, idolization, and wellness culture.
On Real Time, Bill Maher made a blunt joke about Ariana Grande’s weight after referencing a UFO-themed bit, prompting mixed audience reactions and online criticism that it touched on Grande’s public body-image struggles; Grande has announced she’ll pause public appearances after her Eternal Sunshine Tour to focus on her health, with a rep saying she plans to finish the tour and then take a break. TikTok reactions were divided between praise for the humor and condemnation for insensitivity.
An opinion piece that argues there is no single right way to discuss Ariana Grande’s body, highlighting how public scrutiny and thin-ideal discourse can harm those with eating disorders. It notes Grande’s decision to step back from visibility, reflects on the long history of weight discussions around female celebrities, and calls for a broader focus on supporting eating-disorder recovery and reducing stigma rather than crowdsourcing ‘the right’ language to talk about her body.
After Ariana Grande released a music video, social-media chatter about her thin appearance has coincided with a surge of distress among people with eating disorders. Clinicians say they’ve been inundated with calls from individuals overwhelmed by the focus on appearance, highlighting how media scrutiny can worsen body image and trigger harmful behaviors. Experts urge media and fans to avoid equating worth with weight, while Grande has stepped back from public life amid ongoing scrutiny.
A small pilot study of 21 women with long-standing anorexia nervosa found that adding psilocybin (three doses) to intensive talk therapy reduced eating-disorder symptoms and increased motivation to recover for up to a year, though body-mass index did not change and there was no control group; some participants experienced profound shifts while others faced adverse experiences. Researchers caution that results are early and require larger, controlled trials to determine who may benefit and how best to implement this approach.
A Salon columnist argues that the online debate over Ariana Grande’s apparent thinness has become a flashpoint in a broader political campaign to police women’s bodies, as right-wing influencers push a frail femininity as the ideal and media props recruit followers; the piece also notes pushback from figures like Jameela Jamil and links the trend to risks for eating disorders and to a culture war around women’s health and autonomy.
Hilaria Baldwin reveals she began dieting at age 5 and has endured a long history of disordered eating, including anorexia and bulimia. Experts say early dieting is more common than many realize and that disordered eating in children can predict eating disorders in adulthood, with millions affected worldwide and about 20% of kids showing signs. Baldwin emphasizes talking about food and empowerment with her children rather than their appearance, acknowledging the ongoing cultural pull of thin ideals. The piece also notes resources like the National Eating Disorders Association helpline for those seeking help.
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 24 studies (25,223 people) found no meaningful overall difference in eating-disorder symptoms between vegetarians/vegans and meat-eaters. Diet choice is driven by varied reasons (animal welfare, health, environment), and the meaning of restriction matters more than the diet label itself. Most studies were cross-sectional, so causality can’t be established, and samples were largely Western with a female majority. The findings caution against treating veganism/vegetarianism as a warning sign for disordered eating and instead suggest assessing motives, levels of restriction, distress around food, and nutritional adequacy.
A Virginia mother discovers that her daughter’s eating disorder mirrors her own dieting and body‑image struggles; through family education and therapy during the daughter’s treatment, she begins changing her own eating and exercise habits, realizing that caregivers’ struggles don’t cause the disorder but can become part of the healing process for both.
As cyclospora cases rise in the U.S., social media jokes about illness as a quick path to weight loss reveal how entrenched diet culture can trivialize illness and trigger concerns for those with eating disorders; experts warn such humor normalizes unhealthy pursuits and harms health messaging.
As cyclospora outbreaks spread in the U.S., social media jokes about losing weight from the infection reveal how diet culture and fat-phobia normalize illness-driven thinness. Experts warn such humor can trigger eating disorders and undermine health, urging a shift toward well-being and offering resources for support.
Slate’s Mallary Tenore Tarpley examines a Cyclospora outbreak-driven trend where social-media users jokingly or earnestly pursue illness to slim down. She argues the “diarrhea diet” reveals how diet culture valorizes thinness, even at the cost of health, while experts warn that diarrhea mostly causes temporary water loss, not fat loss. The piece weaves in her own history with eating disorders and calls readers to name and resist the normalization of illness as a shortcut to weight loss.
Researchers are exploring interoception, the body's ability to sense internal signals, as a potential sixth sense that helps regulate mood and mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, and eating disorders, with findings noting sex differences and links to mood stability and treatment potential, though the field remains debated.
A University of Louisville–led study published in JAMA Psychiatry finds that among people with eating disorders, about 32% have used GLP-1 medications (e.g., semaglutide in Ozempic/Wegovy) at some point, and roughly 22% are current users—rates much higher than the general public—while about 10% report misuse (such as higher or non-prescribed dosages or sharing). GLP-1s are not indicated for eating disorders, and some individuals may be using them to achieve rapid weight loss or extreme restriction. The researchers emphasize the need for stricter pharmacovigilance as GLP-1 products broaden in form and market reach.