Another study showed increases in visits related to behavioral health among children aged five to 17
Emergency room visits for eating disorders among 12- to 17-year-old girls doubled during the coronavirus pandemic, according to new research from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – a troubling existing trend that was likely worsened by the stress of living through the prolonged crisis.
“We are seeing such a high volume of patients in need of eating disorder care as well as worsening severity,” said Tracy Richmond, a physician and the director of the eating disorder program at Boston Children’s Hospital, who was not involved in the CDC study. “It feels really clear for those of us who take care of teenagers that there is an absolute second pandemic of mental health needs in adolescents.”
