A dancer of the Boston Ballet died when she was 5'3 and only 100 lbs. She wasn't even that thin. Her heart stopped because of all the stress that was put on her to be thin. The need to be thin is a horrible thing. People think that many movie stars and models feel the most pressure. Not true at all. In the ballet world, girls as young as 10 are told to lose weight. The teachers will grab and pull at tiny bulges and say, "what is this?!? You must lose weight to be at your full ability!" It may sound harsh, but girls hear it everyday. Out of the ballet world, there is the pressure to be thin everywhere. Media doesn't help at all. The thin runway models are one of the biggest problems. A lot of the girls on the runways in Europe are as much as 30% under weight. That is considered anorexic. You may be reading this now and saying...well they are beautiful is they are that thin. They may be "beautiful", but they are extremely unhealthy.
There is not only mental problems that are caused by anorexia, but there are many physical problems. Some of these problems can include: problems with digestive tract, irregular heart beats, extreme dehydration, lose of period in women, risk of starvation if not eating anything death could occur in as short as 8 weeks because of the body consuming itself, and the biggest one of all death.
Many people say this couldn't happen to me. They are wrong. It could happen to anyone, including males. It’s hard to believe that men could have a problem with how they look. The urge in men is much different than the urge in women. In men it is more to be “buff” and to be a "macho" man. They have the same risks as women do.
Anorexia is a horrible disease. It affects millions of young people. Never say that it couldn't happen to you or someone you know.
