Images of celebs can spark eating disorders

Increased exposure to images of celebrity bodies is behind the large rise in the number of young girls admitted to hospital with an eating disorder, a leading paediatrician has said.

Dr Michie Colin, chairman of the nutrition committee at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, blamed the increase on children’s use of mobile phones and exposure to advertising, citing their ability to constantly look at images of celebrity bodies as a factor in eating disorder cases.

New figures show that the number of girls admitted to hospital with an eating disorder has doubled in the past three years.

Dr Colin said: “Adverts for children are a very powerful force. I think we have released a behemoth we cannot control. It’s not just peer pressure. Children do have a problem with food that is different to problems they had before.”

In 2013-14, hospitals in England had 1,656 admissions for females up to the age of 19 who were diagnosed with an eating disorder. In 2010-11 there were 840 admissions for the same age group, according to data released by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC).