Preventing Deaths - Everyone with an Eating Disorder Deserves Support
After ten years fighting against an eating disorder, Zara Taylor took her own life in 2021 at the age of just 24.
For years, I have campaigned about the urgent need to do more to address eating disorders, not least of all because of their high mortality rates. Some of these deaths come from the impact eating disorders have on a person's physical health. For instance, the heart muscle can become weak and result in a tragic heart attack. However, the incidence of suicide should not be overlooked, with eating disorders among the highest suicide rates of all mental health conditions.
Research from King's College London reveals that 1 in 5 people with anorexia nervosa who die, do so by suicide. People with eating disorders are also more likely to self-harm, attempt suicide or consider suicide than the average person.
As someone who struggled with an eating disorder for over a decade - and continue to overcome its challenges - I do not exaggerate when I say that it can feel like suicide is the only way out. The desperate truth is that with a healthcare system on its knees, too many people feel this way. The NHS is inadequately prepared to address the scale of the eating disorder emergency, and insufficient awareness means that many go under the radar. This is especially true for those who do not fit the 'White, thin, female' stereotype, have a effusive support network and/or are neurodivergent.
On 22nd January, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Eating Disorders published a report highlighting the urgent need for a national strategy to address the growing eating disorder crisis. An APPG is a group of MPs and Peers across different political parties coming together, alongside eating disorder experts and campaigners in this case, to work on a particular policy issue.
As well as a national strategy, the APPG recommended
additional funding for services, research and a Confidential Inquiry into All
Eating Disorder Deaths.
On the same day, 22nd January, the Rt Hon Sir
Keir Starmer said in Prime Minister’s Questions that he would review the report’s
recommendations. Today, with the launch of the latest APPG report making clear
that little progress has been made, we ask what our Prime Minister and the Secretary
of State for Health, Wes Streeting, are doing to implement change.
Inpatient units with 70-80% unqualified staff, fragmented care and 'healthy living' campaigns promoting disordered eating, the latest report highlights systemic failures that have
repeatedly let individuals slip through the net. Deaths are rising, among
many others that go uncounted, and countless other individuals whose eating
disorders go unnoticed, disregarded or stereotyped.
When people think of eating disorders, they often conjure up
an image of a young White girl with anorexia nervosa. Although, eating disorders can take many forms and affect people
of all ages, genders, and backgrounds. This misunderstanding is reflected in our
health system; Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is now five times more prevalent
than anorexia nervosa, yet there are no dedicated NHS services to support it.
Lives are being lost. Decisive action must be taken to
prevent further deaths.
Each individual eating disorder is as unique as every
person, with its own presentation of symptoms, triggers and underlying causes. People
also have different support networks, from the communities, friends, families
and chosen families we evolve over time. However, with professional services chronically underfunded and resistant to change, misunderstandings of eating disorders can seep into public policy, and even healthcare services, making people extremely vulnerable.
In my experience as an inpatient, I have repeatedly been
asked about my concerns with body image and weight – only to be met with a
smirk or otherwise insistence when I told them I had none. I have been put on
critical waiting lists, falling further into my eating disorder with each
passing day, waiting for a bed to become available. I have seen staff fall asleep
when supervising peers, been on a ward where all but one member of staff knew
our names because they were all from an agency, and been lost in the process of
moving house, moving GPs and transferring between services.
Looking back, these moments have become marks in my journey;
critical times that make me realise how far I have come. I know that if I need to experience situations like these again, I have the skills and resilience to prevent
myself from falling back into disordered eating and exercise. I for one have
been lucky, and I am incredibly grateful to the many dedicated, hardworking and
compassionate people I have met across my recovery journey. I am also thankful for
my peers along the way, and how we supported each other in times of distress on
the ward and overcoming shared fears. But I know that my story of discovery,
into a life where I am no longer dictated by an eating disorder, is
increasingly becoming the exception rather than the rule.
We all know the familiar story of the NHS being pushed
beyond the brink, but the situation is evermore stark for eating disorders.
Not only have eating disorder services been underfunded, but
investigations have found that funds specifically allocated to eating disorder
services in 2019/20 were spent elsewhere (BEAT, 2021). There is a clear de-prioritisation
of eating disorders within the NHS and among our politicians. This is gravely
concerning. There was no major public outcry when this was revealed, and still
no real change in the political agenda. In this context, I am sure that I am
not the only one concerned about how people will be able to survive. And we are
talking here about survival, when what we really need is an NHS capable of helping
people to rebuild, recover and thrive.
Without a robust NHS, an eating disorder can become all
consuming, especially for those most vulnerable. There are fewer safeguards to
catch a slip-up, and less consistent, ever-changing professionals to report to can
brush against trust and faith in the process. It is like placing your life into a decaying building. We cannot say that a person’s death was caused
by any one failure, but crumbling foundations make it more likely that people
with eating disorders will fall.
Zara Taylor, Averil Hart, Pam's son. All these deaths were preventable.
No-one should be dying of an eating disorder. Not in 2025. Not ever. Period.
So with renewed emphasis, we call on the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and the Rt Hon Wes Streeting to address eating disorders as the public health emergency they truly are:
- Review the APPG's recommendations.
- Create a National Strategy.
- Work with the APPG to address the crisis.
If you recognise the urgency of this call, please lend your
voice and send an email to your MP encouraging them to support the APPG’s
recommendations. A template email can be found here.
If you feel comfortable, you can also share your story and tag the
@dump_the_scales account to have it shared across their social media and
galvanise support.
Everyone with an eating disorder deserves a life beyond it,
but systems need to change.
Bibliography:
All-Party Parliamentary Group on Eating Disorders. 2025. An Inquiry into the Prevention of Eating Disorder Deaths. [no place]: [no publisher].
BEAT. 2021. 'Short-changed' report into funding for children and young people’s eating disorder services in England published. [Online]. [Accessed 27 October 2025]. Available from: https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/about-beat/policy-work/short-changed-report/
Herle, M., Foye, U., Gerome, B., Schmidt, U., Dutta, R., Jewell, T. 2025. Why are people with eating disorders at higher risk of suicide?. King's College London. [Online]. [no date]. [Accessed 27 October 2025]. Available from: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/research/eating-disorders-suicide-risk
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