Despite publicity about healthy eating, there is still a lot of pressure out there, especially for girls, to be thin. For 14-year-old Abby Kaufmann of Cary, the pressure led to anorexia

"I was a big calorie counter and weighed myself whenever I was home after I ate something, like religiously," said Kaufmann. "When my parents realized something was wrong, they took away the scale and I went ballistic."

Kaufmann says her obsession with her weight had a lot to do with what the media portrays as ideals. Studies have shown that fashion models are thinner than 98 percent of American women.

Dr. Cynthia Bulik is head of the eating disorders program at UNC Hospitals. She says those media images have made eating disorders an issue not just for teenagers, but for women in their 30s, 40s and 50s.

"Research shows that women actually feel worse about themselves after reading those magazines," said Bulik. "And it's largely because we're comparing ourselves to the models in these magazines and saying, ‘I can never get there,' because they're really a perfect, air-brushed ideal."

Abby and her mom, Amy Kaufmann, know the danger all too well. Abby developed anorexia, which is diagnosed when someone's weight drops to at least 15 percent below normal for her height and age.

"It got really bad," said Amy Kaufmann. "I thought about losing my daughter at one point. I used to go in and make sure she was alive at night."

After two years of costly treatment, including several months in an inpatient center, Abby says she's trying to turn her experience into something positive by starting an organization she's calling NoBODY's Perfect.

"There are so many different ideals and it's just unrealistic," she said. "Instead of trying to achieve whatever you think the perfect ideal is, just think that what you have is great."

Kaufmann knows that her struggle with eating may not be over, but she's determined to be a role model for others and keep herself healthy in the process. The good news for Kaufmann, and other people with eating disorders, is that it can be cured.

"It isn't, once anorexic, always anorexic," said Bulik. "You might still be at risk when things get tough or during big transitions in your life, but people do get well and they go on to live healthy and productive lives."

Kaufmann is introducing NoBODY's Perfect on Tuesday, May 5, at the Loop restaurant in Cary. It's in celebration of International No-Diet Day. The public is invited.  Kaufmann says there will be bins for throwing away fashion magazines and a bin for donating clothing, as well as plenty of information and inspiration for young people and their parents.

Related Links

1. The Eating Disorders Program at UNC Hospitals