Each year millions of people in the United States are affected by serious and sometimes life-threatening eating disorders. This is illustrated by the fact that eating disorders are on the rise among athletes, especially those involved in sports that place great emphasis on the athlete to be thin. Sports such as gymnastics, figure skating, dancing and distance running have a higher percentage of athletes with eating disorders, than sports such as basketball, skiing and volleyball (Black 2003). The vast majority are adolescents and young adult women, even more notable amongst women athletes. Approximately one percent of adolescent girls develop anorexia nervosa, a dangerous condition in which they can literally starve themselves to death. Another two to three percent develop bulimia nervosa, a destructive pattern of excessive overeating followed by vomiting or other "purging " behaviors to control their weight (McClean 2003). Although this rate may seem alarming at first glance,......

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Title: Eating Disorders
Approximate Word Count: 2990
Approximate Pages: 12 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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