Warning Signs

*This is not an extensive list, and not all people who suffer from eating disorders will display all of these signs. Specifically, many people who struggle with an eating disorder do not show physical symptoms, and yet are in need of help and treatment.

Emotional/Cognitive

  • Preoccupation with food, weight, or body
  • Reports of being unhappy with self and desire to change the way they look
  • Withdrawal from others
  • Mood swings
  • Perceived or reported anxiety around food
  • Discomfort eating in front of others
  • Trying to control their body through dieting and other strategies
  • Eating in secret
  • Rigidity in types of food they eat/when they eat
  • Food rituals: Picking apart food, eating foods in certain order, eliminating entire food groups
  • Frequently checking their body in a mirror or through touch to assess appearance

Behavioral

  • Discomfort eating in front of others
  • Trying to control their body through dieting and other strategies
  • Eating in secret
  • Rigidity in types of food they eat/when they eat
  • Food rituals: Picking apart food, eating foods in certain order, eliminating entire food groups
  • Frequently checking their body in a mirror or through touch to assess appearance

Physical

  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Dizziness/feeling off balance/fainting
  • Fluctuations in weight
  • “Peach fuzz,” fine hair on body (lanugo)
  • Swollen glands in lower face and throat (salivary glands)
  • Cuts on tops of hand and fingers
  • Bloodshot eyes and popped blood vessels in face
  • Dental problems
  • Issues with menstruation (particularly the lack of a period for an extended period of time)
  • Gastrointestinal issues
  • Poor circulation
  • Reports of feeling cold all the time

Eating Disorders: Do you know the signs?

  • Are they obsessive about food, exercise, weight, or dieting?
  • Do they have distorted beliefs about their body and food?
  • Are they often tired, struggling to concentrate, or complain of frequent dizziness?
  • Do they disappear to the bathroom after meals?
  • Do they struggle to have flexibility around food?
  • Do they eat in secret?
  • Do they frequently eat past the point of fullness?