Becoming Anorexic: Learning to Starve on the Internet

Young women with anorexia are gathering on what are called pro ana or pro anorexia websites. Girls who often have nothing in common except the desire to be thin visit sites that feature message boards where women can bond and share tips on how to lose weight. These sites have become a way for women to bond and encourage each other to keep losing weight. Perhaps the most disturbing messages on these boards are ones by young girls new to anorexia who ask, "How can I learn to hide my anorexia from my parents?" The sites become virtual how-to manuals for girls who aspire to the heights of anorexia, without taking into consideration the depths into which they are doomed to fall if they stay on the anorexic path. The girls exchange advice, share stories, complain about parents who want them to eat, and share every detail of what they've eaten that day. To their credit, many girls on the boards warn newcomers not to go down the eating disorder path, but few heed the warnings. The overriding message of these websites is that anorexia is not a disease, but a lifestyle choice. This gives girl the excuse to keep up their dangerous eating habits. By calling it a "choice," it gives women a reason to keep starving. It becomes a political issue rather than a health issue. Should these sites be banned or censored? I don't feel they should. As harmful as they may be, they are not the cause of anorexia. The cause lies much deeper in the foundation of our society. All one has to do is look at the "thinspiration" photos displayed on these sites to see that it is our media that provides the "inspiration" to starve. The pro ana sites are just a symptom of the overall disease that plagues our society, the one that tells young women that "emaciation is in." Until society finds a way to teach girls at a young age that protruding bones are not fashionable or desirable, girls will be starving themselves. And as long as girls are starving themselves in this high-tech age, they will be talking about it online.