The Portrayal of Eating Disorders in Film

THE PORTRAYAL OF EATING

DISORDERS IN FILM

Ellie Ip, Year 12, Keller

Eating disorders are dangerous and deadly diseases that could put anyone at risk anytime. A study in 2007 found that about one in five secondary school students aged twelve to eighteen were at risk of disordered eating. Eating disorders are a group of mental illnesses characterized by severe and persistent disturbance in eating behaviours associated with distressing thoughts and emotions. They can be life-threatening and can affect one ’ s perception of their own body.

The most common types of eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder. Anorexia nervosa is when one has an extremely restrictive diet and not eating enough for their age, weight and gender. This usually leads to a significantly low BMI. People with anorexia nervosa usually have an extreme fear of gaining weight. Bulimia nervosa is when one consumes a large amount of food whenever they have negative emotions (binging), and due to guilt and fear of gaining weight, they try to get rid of the food by vomiting, excessive exercising or taking pills like laxatives. Binge eating disorder is when one constantly engages in excessive eating and cannot stop eating even if they feel full, some may call it a food addiction or compulsive eating.

Having been a prominent feature displayed in films since the 13th century, eating disorders are constantly being made aware of; however, how they are portrayed is not always ideal. The first film to explicitly portray eating disorders was ‘The Best Little Girl In the World’ . This television film released in 1981 is based on its counterpart: a novel published in 1978. Following the life of Casey, a teenage cheerleader and ballet dancer who suffers from anorexia and bulimia, this film accurately illustrates the significant effects one ’ s eating disorder could have not only on themselves but also on their families.

However, despite films raising awareness on the issue of mental health and eating disorders, it could arguably have an adverse effect. Many mental health professionals argue that films and the media in general often have a tendency to glamourise and beautify mental illnesses, eating disorders included. However, eating disorders are anything but glamorous. The reality of such disorders are often devastating and without proper recognition and treatment, they can result in permanent damage or death.

An example of this would be the portrayal of anorexia nervosa, a common eating disorder. Films often associate anorexia with starvation and weight loss. They tend to make the subtle implications that anorexia is often seen in young Caucasian females who strive for perfection, which in turn creates an unrealistic stereotype within the general population.

In reality, this is far from the truth.

Eating disorders are more than an obsession with food and weight loss, they are also often characterized by underlying triggers that are

associated with depression, self-harm, trauma, interpersonal conflict, substance abuse, low selfesteem and anxiety. People who suffer from anorexia often lack the ability to gain a sense of self-control. Additionally, eating disorders do not discriminate against gender, ethnicity, age or body type. We need to raise awareness to the general population that anorexia is not an exclusive eating disorder, it can also affect men as well as non-Caucasian individuals. To imply that mental illnesses are only subject to certain ethnicities and races is creating a disadvantage for those who do not fit into the stereotypical image.

In 2017, Netflix released a film titled “To The Bone ” , presenting the reality of eating disorders and the difficulties that come with treatment. The movie was about a young white woman named Ellen who is anorexic. In the movie ’ s narrative arc, she ’ s admitted to a treatment centre, gets better, and then worsens throughout the film. This shows the audience that treatment may not always go smoothly and it will be a long process. This may be an advantage of films on eating disorders as it lets the audience know that they are not alone and it is a normal process, this may encourage the audience to recover and prevent them from giving up with the long process. In the process, Ellen has shown some common habits of one with eating disorders, for example, body checking, calorie calculating and exercising excessively. Another notable part of the movie is there was a young black woman and a male ballet dancer admitted at Ellen ' s treatment centre, which goes against the stereotypical norms portrayed in the media of the type of people with eating disorders. This further emphasizes the incorrect portrayal of eating disorders and brings more attention towards males and other ethnicities receiving treatment. Though Ellen ’ s character fits the stereotypical anorexic persona, the film had tried to spread the fact that mental illness doesn 't discriminate and spread knowledge and awareness with good intentions. However, the film is not exactly accurate in representing the reality of treatments as it was really unconventional. Treatments are usually done in hospitals and professional treatment centres with supervision from doctors and nurses. Other treatments could also include medications, cognitive behavioural therapy or talking therapies.

Over decades, psychologists have been arguing that there is never a right way of portraying eating disorders in films even if its intentions are good. Films relating to mental health have always been a “danger zone ” and is often perceived as a glamourisation of mental health and is potentially triggering for many people who are suffering. Nowadays with social media, even if you choose to not watch the film, it is unpreventable to watch trailers or scenes of it on social media like Instagram or Twitter and the short appearance of that may lead to a lot of trigger especially for people who are trying to recover.

Raising awareness may be important; however, when producing films—that can easily be accessed by anyone—about sensitive topics like eating disorders, many aspects should be carefully controlled. Professional psychologists should be involved in making sure triggering aspects are carefully included and do not teach the audience even more ways to worsen their situation. Trigger warnings should also be placed at the beginning of the film in order to alert the audience that there may be distressing images in the film.

While films on eating disorders are effective for raising awareness about the disorders, it could also negatively impact people without

eating disorders by providing them with possible

'thinspiration ' and introducing them to actions that they may imitate. This may lead to more people getting eating disorders. Furthermore, many actors who are asked to portray a character with an eating disorder are placed on restrictive diets so they can look the part. This can easily make them deeply involved in the role and end up with a borderline eating disorder, even after filming is over, which is not the message films should be spreading to the public.

ARTWORK BY JENNIFER ZHOU, YEAR 10, GELLHORN