I would just like to commend you for the article you ran on eating disorders by Cheryl Alcon. I, too, am a recovering anorexic, and now that I have read this...I wonder if I would have been considered a compulsive eater as well. It really hit close to home. I've been out of therapy for three years now, and although I've had many set backs, I know I am improving. I'm majoring in clinical-developmental psychology, and any other articles on this would help me tremendously. If you know of any, please let me know. Also the poems, within the article, were beautiful. Is there any way I can get in touch with the girls who wrote them? Thank you for the article, again, and for your time. Sincerly, Gail

I wanted to pass along a few resources. Have you heard of Joan Blumberg's Fasting Girls? There was also a great article in Essence a couple of years ago about black women and anorexia/bulimia. Also, a few years ago, when Christina Hoff Sommer's book came out attacking anorexia/bulimia, I did lots of research on this topic and spoke with many doctors. Unfortunately, it is a disease that continues to affect many women (although approx. 10 percent of the cases are men) and it also leads to approximately 40,000 deaths each year. This disease is also not helped by advertisements that present unrealistic expectations for girls.

Good luck and let me know if you want more information.

P.S. To try to get in touch with the girls who wrote the poems, you might want to contact Teen Voices Magazine, which published the article.

—Amy