Eating Disorders on the Rise Among Japanese Students: Yuan Watanabe’s Story | CBC Television

2024-05-07 00:43:31

Yuan Watanabe suffered from anorexia when she was in the 6th grade of elementary school and once weighed only 26 kg. /CBC Television

It has been reported that eating disorders, which involve extreme dietary restrictions, are on the rise among young students in Japan. An eating disorder is an illness that causes problems with food intake due to psychological problems. Experts analyze that since the coronavirus pandemic, eating disorders have increased due to stress, which makes communication with peers difficult.

According to a case revealed on CBC Television on the 6th, Yuan Watanabe (18), who lives in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, suffered from an eating disorder since she was in the 6th grade of elementary school. At the time, Ms. Watanabe’s height and weight were 155 cm and 26 kg, respectively, so her bones were barely visible. Considering that the normal weight of a woman with a height of 155 cm is usually 46-55 kg, she is seriously underweight. Ms. Watanabe recalls: “When I saw pictures of skinny people, I thought, ‘I can’t do that.’ » I thought it was like a game to see how far I might reduce the number of people. love with the pleasure of losing weight.

In order to have a slim body, he drastically reduced his food intake, which led to health problems. I was hospitalized and released due to anorexia several times until I was in college. It is said that as stress increased during this process, emotional problems arose. Ms Watanabe’s mother said: “I know a primary school child’s life is in danger because he suffers from anorexia, but it was very difficult not being able to do anything for him. »

Fortunately, Ms. Watanabe overcame her anorexia by starting a “vegan diet” on her mother’s recommendation in her freshman year of high school, and she is now almost completely cured.

There was also the case of a woman in her thirties who had suffered from an eating disorder for 15 years. Mr. A (33), who lives in Aichi Prefecture, has been obsessed with being thin since he was a teenager and lost weight by eating very little. Mr. A is currently 158 cm tall and weighs 38 kg, which is slightly better than in the past, but is still far from normal weight. Mr. A said: “In the past, even when I weighed 30 kg, I always thought that I always wanted to lose more weight,” and added: “Great for my bones to be visible.” “The more I saw my bones, the happier I became and I didn’t know what to do. » He continues: “Because I was afraid of calories, I only ate small radishes or seaweed for miso soup, and only carrots and konjac for rice. “I was eating less than 30 kcal (per day),” he said.

It is said that as this lifestyle continued, one or two abnormalities began to form in the body. When I was 27 and my weight had dropped to 27 kg, I had to be hospitalized. I mightn’t walk, I mightn’t go to the bathroom, and I mightn’t take off or put on my clothes. Mr. A admitted that at one point his pulse decreased and his body temperature dropped to 34 degrees, which put his life in danger.

Currently I get better eating small amounts of protein like meat and fish, but this time other side effects occurred. Anorexia, one of the types of eating disorders, has developed. Person A said, “Once you eat, you can’t stop.” “I feel like I can’t control my body,” he said. “It’s hard, but I cry, I vomit and I repeat the same thing. “There are few specialized hospitals and no medicines, so recovery is difficult,” he said. He added : “Because of my anorexia, I have distanced myself from my friends. Daily life is completely ruined. “I want to eat normally without thinking regarding anything,” he said.

According to the Japanese Society of Eating Disorders, the number of adolescents with eating disorders increased by more than 1.5 times during the Corona period from 2019 to 2020. Experts pointed out that the one reason was that teenagers might not communicate with their peers and were isolated because of the coronavirus. CBC TV added: “According to the current national survey, approximately 240,000 patients suffer from eating disorders, which are mental illnesses. The mortality rate from eating disorders is around 5%, which is known to be the highest among diseases of the mind. spirit.”

Experts say it is important to detect and treat eating disorders early by paying attention to changes in children’s weight at home or in educational settings.

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