What profession has the highest percentage of eating disorders?
When I asked my search engine, here's the answer AI gave me:
A robot wrote:
Eating disorders are particularly prevalent among individuals in professions that emphasize body image, such as dancers, models, and athletes. These fields often have high pressure regarding appearance, which can contribute to the development of eating disorders.
OK, we've got some validation here, as the third group overlaps neatly with our cultural concerns. We've also got a lot of vagueness and a response that relies way to much on "common sense."
I think the real answer, which is obvious if you think about it, isn't really even hinted at in the response given above. It's jockeys, and it probably isn't even close. If you don't engage in disordered eating, you will have zero success as a jockey. You also need to be below average height, and you actually have an advantage there if you are female. But it's dangerous, and you need to accept the risks...hence it's male dominated to this day. (And if that sounds sexist...fine...it wasn't meant as a compliment to half the world's population at the expense at the other half.)
Are there more female athletes with eating disorders than male athletes? Well, "common sense" again tells us it has to be the former group. But a look at successful East African marathoners might make us question that premise. We don't have any accounts from male East African marathon runners where they talk about their diets (someone please correct me...because I'm pretty certain that I'm wrong). But we do have Deena Kastor's comment that her coach at one time told her that she should "eat about as much as two hands cupped" at every meal. (I know...what a monster!) Just to make it more interesting...we are talking about this Deena Kastor:
Clip starts with a comment that she "Is looking like she's got a bronze medal." Take a look at her body when she finishes. "Looking like she's got a bronze medal" takes on a whole new meaning.
So, let's get back to the point. Some of us are disgusted and feel that "something should be done." We appear to have settled on arguing back-and-forth and validating points of view that accord with our own. Is that helping?
Can we be more specific?
I don't want anyone to die more than anyone else here. I want less suffering in the world.
But I also want adults to be able to make their own choices. And children to be raised the way their parents see fit, absent of laws that are being broken. There's some real tension here, and a lot of it comes from our culture.
What if our culture is wrong? What if it isn't helping? That's a serious question. Then what?
Like many threads here, a few people don't like someone for whatever particular reason and they then go out of their way to destroy the reputation of the person.
70% of people are overweight. 95% of people would be faster if they lost weight. 1% of people should gain weight.
We are talking specifically about that 1%, not the 95%. The 95% is not relevant to this conversation. Talking about one issue doesn't negate the other.
70% of people are overweight. 95% of people would be faster if they lost weight. 1% of people should gain weight.
We are talking specifically about that 1%, not the 95%. The 95% is not relevant to this conversation. Talking about one issue doesn't negate the other.
Also 1% of what? The entire population of runners in the world? Maybe?
In high school, college, subelite, and professional distance running, it's a bigger percentage.
On the eve of the Brooks (formerly Footlocker, Kinney) HS XC Nationals, I wanted to learn more about the Female Triad Syndrome and REDS. It's actually simple. REDS is a slight generalization of the Triad to include males. However, the Triad not somehow outdated or left behind. The Triad is actually more important, because it has the key symptom (loss of period) which is critical for females.
There is an excellent resource, Stanford FASTR, which is working to simplify the complexities and get the information out, most importantly to high school female athletes at risk. They have some great graphics and 5 videos which get the messages out, without getting lost in the complexities of trying to understand everything at once.