Eating disorders affect 1.25 million people across the country, and in Eating Disorder Awareness Week Barbara has called on the Government to do more to support people with eating disorders.

Too many people are not receiving the help they need because of long waiting times for services and medical staff who don’t have training in eating disorders. Barbara met people who are recovering from eating disorders to hear about their experiences, including one woman who had been told by a GP that she wasn’t thin enough to have an eating disorder, despite weighing only 38kg.

Barbara says:

“It is shameful that people with eating disorders are being let down by the Government and the medical profession. Timely treatment can make a real difference in treating eating disorders, so we shouldn’t be seeing doctors withhold support because people don’t fit what they think someone with an eating disorder looks like.

“The Government must do more to support people with eating disorders. They should champion the inclusion of eating disorders in doctors basic training, and give mental health services the funding that they need to provide everyone who needs support with a timely and effective service.”

You can read Barbara’s speech in the debate on eating disorders here.