Children as young as six battling eating disorders post-Covid after viewing harmful content on social media apps like Tik Tok and Instagram, reveals Burnley-born medic and Preston S.E.E.D clinical director

Children as young as six-years-old are battling eating disorders after consuming harmful content on social media, says a Burnley-born therapist.
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Some 220 people have attended support groups and 180 have been treated at a Preston eating disorder clinic since 2020.

Many youngsters have replaced crash dieting with exercise addiction since the end of lockdown to cope with social anxiety and low self-esteem as they struggle to log off their online worlds and return to normal life, the mental health nurse reveals.

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Shelley Perry, S.E.E.D clinical director, says many children now obsess more over their bodies and how they compare to others due to living on image-orientated apps like Instagram for so long. While children with eating disorders are usually diagnosed as teenagers, the medic is seeing more under 13s becoming seriously unwell.

Many children now obsess more over their bodies and how they compare to others due to living on image-orientated apps like Instagram for so long, says an eating disorder therapist. (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images).Many children now obsess more over their bodies and how they compare to others due to living on image-orientated apps like Instagram for so long, says an eating disorder therapist. (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images).
Many children now obsess more over their bodies and how they compare to others due to living on image-orientated apps like Instagram for so long, says an eating disorder therapist. (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images).

Shelley said: “We have seen far more young people than we have ever seen before, right down to six or seven-year-olds. It’s absolutely heart-breaking.

“They are so susceptible to low self-esteem at a time when they’re developing their identity, and it can cause depression and anxiety.”

How has the pandemic helped to spark eating disorders in children?

Post-pandemic life has helped intensify their social anxiety, with Shelley saying: “They are scared of change and we’re seeing more autistic traits. They’ve been cocooned for so long and now they’re back mixing with people but they’re not used to society’s expectations of how they should be.”

Shelley Perry, S.E.E.D clinical director.Shelley Perry, S.E.E.D clinical director.
Shelley Perry, S.E.E.D clinical director.
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Many children are developmentally two years behind because of social isolation and restricted schooling during lockdown, she adds. The pressures to return to normality quickly and fulfil the expectations of adults who have more experience of pre-pandemic life are forcing them to retreat behind screens and abuse their bodies as they attempt to gain control over their lives.

“There’s a huge pressure for them to perform academically and the stress for them is really difficult. They’ve been thrown in the deep end and they don’t know how to cope,” she said.

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How does peer pressure contribute to eating disorders?

Shelley Perry outside Breathe Therapies Eating Disorder Help & Wellbeing Services.Shelley Perry outside Breathe Therapies Eating Disorder Help & Wellbeing Services.
Shelley Perry outside Breathe Therapies Eating Disorder Help & Wellbeing Services.

Many children’s online worlds are rife with cyberbullying, leading to body dysmorphia, Shelley reveals.

“They are terrified of being rejected by friendship groups, with some children being really cruel and bullying others over little things, like their hair and makeup.

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“Social media bullying has almost ramped up since lockdown. There are a lot of kids with eating disorders who are being bullied online. It’s become a huge problem because bullying is almost the norm, like it’s cool and trendy to be mean, act out online and text horrible things.

“I sat with one girl in session as she was being abused by text by so-called friends. She didn’t even realise she was being bullied - she thought it was normal.

Shelley Perry has suffered from an eating disorder in the past. Photographer - Neil O'Connor.Shelley Perry has suffered from an eating disorder in the past. Photographer - Neil O'Connor.
Shelley Perry has suffered from an eating disorder in the past. Photographer - Neil O'Connor.

“But it’s at the heart of her eating disorder. She thought if she looked good, she’d be accepted by them.”

How do some social media influencers contribute to the issue?

Shelley believes some youngsters lack parental or professional guidance about making healthy choices, and pick up dangerous habits after reading misinformation online. More regulation is needed to stop non-professionals from buying followers on social media and creating the illusion of being an authority on health and fitness, she adds, in order to curb the spread of misinformation.

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“There are people with no qualifications who are promoting themselves as mental health practitioners. For people who are mentally ill, it’s dangerous.

“I’ve been working with a girl who has really struggled to accept she has an eating disorder. She wasn’t well but she was adamant she could do it herself. Three months later, she was back in a really bad way. She’d started with a PT at the gym and all the stuff she’d done [to become healthy] had just been completely reversed. After reaching a healthy weight with us, she lost it all and was right back to square one.”

How does social media promote eating disorders?

Some content on apps like Instagram has been encouraging eating disorders with hashtags such as #Thinspiration for at least a decade, according to the nurse. That’s why charity Beat is campaigning for Instagram to crack down on “pro-ana” or “pro-mia'' pages - content that inspires anorexic and bulimic behaviour.

Video platform Tik Tok also came under fire by health campaigners who say its content glorifies eating disorders. The app has more than 800m users - 41% of whom are aged between 16 and 24.

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“There are a lot of pro-anorexia sites that promote unhealthy lifestyles, so we encourage young people to come off Instagram if they have an eating disorder,” said Shelley.

“They tend to withdraw from their social circle, feel misunderstood and lonely, and seek out others online who understand their mindset. It makes them feel in control.”

Shelley says they are often perfectionists who lack insight into their illness, adding: “They tend to think it's an OK lifestyle choice, and want to create communities and befriend people with eating disorders who have no intention of getting well. They compare themselves and what they're doing to other people. It makes them feel better about themselves but in a destructive way. They talk about individual issues like how many calories they’re eating for the purpose of one-upping. It’s not just for support.

“The nature of the illness is so competitive and often the purpose of these accounts is for girls to inspire each other to be the best anorexic.”

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A spokesperson for Facebook, which owns Instagram, said: “We want everyone to have a safe experience on our platforms, especially young people. We have never allowed content that promotes eating disorders and we have removed the account brought to our attention.”