Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, in partnership with the Stanford University School of Medicine has conducted the first-ever large-scale analysis of pro-eating disorder websites. Many sites were found to have an odd mix of both weight-loss and recovery tips.
“The paper reports on 180 Web sites that were found using search terms such as ‘Pro-ana’… The researchers evaluated each site’s basic logistics; accessories such as interactive forums or calorie counters; themes (including control, success and perfection); ‘thinspiration’ images, tips and techniques for weight loss; and recovery information. They assigned each site a ‘perceived harm’ score based on their assessment of how harmful the site would be to users.” [Source: MediLexicon]
About one-quarter of the sites scored high on the “perceived harm” scale, while most fell somewhere in the middle. Interestingly, most of the site recognized eating disorders as illnesses, and about one-third of them offered recovery information.
Labels: pro-anorexia, internet
Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton