One in five adolescents with eating disorders reported suicide attempts. Lifetime prevalence reaches 0.1 percent for anorexia nervosa among those aged 12 to 17. The sections below examine how these figures vary across risk behaviors, clinical complications, and treatment patterns.
Key Takeaways
- 1 in 5 adolescents with eating disorders reported suicide attempts
- 1.0% of adolescents reported purging behaviors at some point in their lifetime
- 0.3% of adolescents met criteria for eating disorder not otherwise specified (lifetime) in a meta-analysis of community studies
- 0.1% of adolescents aged 12–17 met criteria for anorexia nervosa (lifetime) in a US nationally representative analysis
- 3% of adolescents reported lifetime use of fasting or skipping meals to control weight
- Severity at diagnosis: 50% of adolescents with anorexia nervosa had an elevated or severely elevated Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) global score in a multicenter cohort
- 12.2% of adolescents had clinically significant eating disorder risk in a Swedish school-based screening program report
- 22% of adolescents with bulimia nervosa required medical monitoring for dehydration/renal lab abnormalities in an outpatient cohort
- 28% of adolescents with anorexia nervosa showed orthostatic hypotension on clinical assessment in a hospital-based retrospective cohort
- In a nationwide inpatient trends analysis, hospital admissions for anorexia nervosa among females aged 10–19 increased by 21% from 2009 to 2018
- Social media exposure was associated with a 1.4x higher risk of disordered eating behaviors in a meta-analysis of observational studies
- The median time from first care-seeking to diagnosis was 1.6 years for adolescents with eating disorders in a retrospective cohort study
- Family-based therapy (FBT) delivered in outpatient settings was associated with a 0.81 effect size improvement in eating-disorder symptoms in meta-analytic evidence
- In 2019, 14.9% of US high school students reported seriously considering suicide (context for elevated comorbidity risk in eating disorder populations)
- Among US adolescents receiving inpatient treatment for eating disorders, 12% were readmitted within 30 days (claims-based observational measure)
One in five adolescents with eating disorders reported suicide attempts, underscoring urgent prevention and care.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence Rates11 stats
01
1 in 5 adolescents with eating disorders reported suicide attemptshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6738371/
02
1.0% of adolescents reported purging behaviors at some point in their lifetimehttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28752241/
03
0.3% of adolescents met criteria for eating disorder not otherwise specified (lifetime) in a meta-analysis of community studieshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6127880/
04
3.5% of adolescents with eating disorders had comorbid substance use disorderhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3100790/
05
4.6% of adolescents experienced subthreshold eating disorder symptoms in a population studyhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7138419/
06
0.6% of adolescents reported binge eating behaviors weekly or more oftenhttps://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr020.pdf
07
6.8% of adolescents reported not eating for 24 hours or more to lose weight in the past 12 monthshttps://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6401a1.htm
08
0.5% of high school students reported extreme binge eating with compensatory behaviorshttps://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7322a1.htm
09
1.8% of adolescents aged 12–17 years in the US met criteria for binge eating disorder in a national analysishttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29425805/
10
2.5% of adolescents had any eating disorder or subthreshold condition in a US national survey analysishttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22486585/
11
18% of adolescents with eating disorder symptoms report risky sexual behaviorhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550824/
Interpretation
Prevalence Rates Interpretation
Prevalence in adolescence is not confined to diagnosed eating disorders since weekly binge eating affects 0.6% and subthreshold symptoms reach 4.6%, while lifetime purging is reported by 1.0% and only 0.3% meet criteria for eating disorder not otherwise specified, showing a broad spectrum of risk that extends beyond formal diagnoses.
02 · Category
Prevalence And Risk5 stats
01
0.1% of adolescents aged 12–17 met criteria for anorexia nervosa (lifetime) in a US nationally representative analysishttps://www.jaacap.org/article/S0890-8567(16)30409-2/fulltext
02
3% of adolescents reported lifetime use of fasting or skipping meals to control weighthttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK572498/
03
Severity at diagnosis: 50% of adolescents with anorexia nervosa had an elevated or severely elevated Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) global score in a multicenter cohorthttps://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16506073.2020.1848317
04
74% of parents reported that their adolescent had experienced at least one trigger related to dieting/weight-related comments before symptom onsethttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2755326
05
57% of adolescents who reported eating-disorder behaviors met criteria for at least one mental health comorbidity (pooled adolescent survey findings summarized in a review)https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-clinpsy-032511-143135
Interpretation
Prevalence And Risk Interpretation
Even though only about 0.1% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 meet lifetime criteria for anorexia nervosa, much wider risk signals show up in prevalence-related behaviors and triggers, with 3% reporting lifetime fasting or skipping meals and 74% of parents noting at least one dieting or weight-comment trigger, underscoring that the risk landscape is far broader than the diagnosed cases.
03 · Category
Health Outcomes5 stats
01
12.2% of adolescents had clinically significant eating disorder risk in a Swedish school-based screening program reporthttps://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16506073.2021.1953570
02
22% of adolescents with bulimia nervosa required medical monitoring for dehydration/renal lab abnormalities in an outpatient cohorthttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215036620300305
03
28% of adolescents with anorexia nervosa showed orthostatic hypotension on clinical assessment in a hospital-based retrospective cohorthttps://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/105/3/763/5628803
04
15% of adolescents with binge eating disorder had hypertension at baseline in an observational studyhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213851720300161
05
2.1% of adolescents (ages 12–18) who presented to emergency departments in a US claims dataset had eating-disorder-related visits (ED visit rate per enrolled member-months; observational administrative study)https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2737900
Interpretation
Health Outcomes Interpretation
Across health outcomes, the data show that clinically significant risk is common in community screening at 12.2%, while for diagnosed eating disorders the proportion of adolescents with serious medical complications ranges from 15% with hypertension in binge eating disorder to 28% with orthostatic hypotension in anorexia nervosa, and even emergency visits capture 2.1% with eating-disorder-related care.
04 · Category
Industry Trends2 stats
01
In a nationwide inpatient trends analysis, hospital admissions for anorexia nervosa among females aged 10–19 increased by 21% from 2009 to 2018https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215036621001732
02
Social media exposure was associated with a 1.4x higher risk of disordered eating behaviors in a meta-analysis of observational studieshttps://psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-24373-001
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
For industry trends, inpatient care is signaling a rise in severity as female adolescents aged 10 to 19 with anorexia nervosa saw hospital admissions increase by 21% from 2009 to and research also links social media exposure to a 1.4 times higher risk of disordered eating behaviors.
05 · Category
Treatment Access3 stats
01
The median time from first care-seeking to diagnosis was 1.6 years for adolescents with eating disorders in a retrospective cohort studyhttps://www.jaacap.org/article/S0890-8567(19)30125-7/fulltext
02
Family-based therapy (FBT) delivered in outpatient settings was associated with a 0.81 effect size improvement in eating-disorder symptoms in meta-analytic evidencehttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2810614
03
In 2019, 14.9% of US high school students reported seriously considering suicide (context for elevated comorbidity risk in eating disorder populations)https://afsp.org/suicide-statistics/
Interpretation
Treatment Access Interpretation
For adolescents with eating disorders, the gap between first seeking care and getting a diagnosis can be long at a median of 1.6 years, while evidence from outpatient family-based therapy shows a meaningful 0.81 effect size improvement in symptoms, underscoring the need to improve treatment access alongside the high comorbidity risk where 14.9% of US high school students seriously considered suicide in 2019.
06 · Category
Economic Burden5 stats
01
Among US adolescents receiving inpatient treatment for eating disorders, 12% were readmitted within 30 days (claims-based observational measure)https://www.jahonline.org/article/S1054-139X(21)00123-4/fulltext
02
Average cost per episode was $9,800in outpatient-only treatment vs. $28,600 in inpatient episodes for eating-disorder treatment in a US claims-based analysishttps://www.milliman.com/-/media/milliman/pdfs/2019/health/2019-eating-disorders-and-treatment-costs.pdf
03
A 2020 analysis estimated productivity losses attributable to eating disorders in the United States at $64.7 billion per year (including caregivers and workplace impacts)https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/2020/eating-disorders-burden-costs-and-treatment
04
Regional variation: adolescents in states with lower specialist density had 1.3x higher odds of inpatient admissions for eating disorders (administrative analysis)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213861721000134
05
The mean length of stay for adolescents admitted for anorexia nervosa was 19.6 days in a national inpatient sample studyhttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2706649
Interpretation
Economic Burden Interpretation
The economic burden of eating disorders in adolescence is substantial, with outpatient episodes averaging $9,800 versus $28,600 for inpatient treatment and as much as $64.7 billion in annual productivity losses in the United States, alongside high utilization like 12% of inpatient-treated adolescents being readmitted within 30 days.
More related reading
07 · Category
Treatment & Care Access1 stats
01
In the US, 68.1% of youth with special healthcare needs received needed care coordination (National Survey on Children’s Health, 2022).https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2022-national-survey-children-s-health
Interpretation
Treatment & Care Access Interpretation
In the Treatment & Care Access category, only 68.1% of US youth with special healthcare needs received needed care coordination, suggesting that nearly one in three adolescents may face gaps in accessing comprehensive eating disorder support.
08 · Category
Prevalence & Risk1 stats
01
72.3% of adolescents with eating-disorder risk reported regular dieting behaviors at baseline in the same Swedish school-based screening program.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31732887/
Interpretation
Prevalence & Risk Interpretation
In the Prevalence and Risk context, 72.3% of adolescents with eating-disorder risk reported regular dieting behaviors at baseline in the Swedish school screening, underscoring how common dieting is among those already at risk.
09 · Category
Burden & Outcomes4 stats
01
Eating disorders ranked among the leading causes of years lived with disability (YLDs) within mental health conditions for adolescent populations in Global Burden of Disease results (2019).https://ghdx.healthdata.org/gbd-results-tool
02
In adolescents with anorexia nervosa, the median time to mortality across follow-up was reported at 5.0 years in a large cohort study (reported as survival time in the study’s outcomes).https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2681237
03
In a 2018 systematic review, mortality risk in eating disorders was quantified with standardized mortality ratios elevated versus general populations across study cohorts (reported in the review’s meta-analytic results).https://www.bmj.com/content/361/bmj.k1967
04
In 2021, 8.1% of US adolescents (age 12–17) had severe major depressive episode in NSDUH estimates.https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2021-nsduh-mental-health-mental-illness
Interpretation
Burden & Outcomes Interpretation
For the burden and outcomes perspective, eating disorders in adolescence contribute substantially to disability as a leading YLD source in mental health, and severe outcomes are reflected by a median 5.0-year time to mortality in anorexia nervosa cohorts and elevated standardized mortality ratios in systematic review findings, underscoring that these conditions drive both long-lasting impairment and serious risk.
10 · Category
Cost Analysis3 stats
01
$64.7 billion per year are estimated productivity losses attributable to eating disorders in the US (including caregivers and workplace impacts).https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2020.01269
02
$27.4 billion in societal costs for eating disorders in the US (direct and indirect costs combined as reported in a published economic analysis).https://doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czz067
03
$1.4 billion per year is estimated for inpatient healthcare spending for eating-disorder-related care in the US (payer-claims analysis estimate reported in the study).https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jval.2021.10.007
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
From a cost analysis perspective, eating disorders in the US impose a heavy economic burden, with an estimated $64.7 billion per year in productivity losses and $27.4 billion in total societal costs, while inpatient care alone accounts for $1.4 billion annually.
11 · Category
Market & Industry2 stats
01
The eating disorders therapeutics market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.2% from 2024 to 2032 (market research forecast from the same report).https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/06/19/2895523/0/en/Eating-Disorders-Therapeutics-Market-Analysis-by-Therapeutic-Class-Route-of-Administration-Patient-Group-End-User-Forecast-to-2032.html
02
Telehealth use for mental health visits reached 45% of outpatient mental health encounters in 2022 in the US (NAMCS/NSSRN telehealth distribution reported by a federal advisory/analysis).https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db512.pdf
Interpretation
Market & Industry Interpretation
The eating disorders therapeutics market is set to expand at a 7.2% CAGR from 2024 to 2032 while telehealth already accounted for 45% of US outpatient mental health encounters in 2022, signaling growing demand and distribution opportunities for treatment options in the Market and Industry landscape.
report visual · Key figures
How common are eating disorder behaviors and related conditions in adolescents?
Key prevalence and risk-related markers show that eating-disorder symptoms can affect a noticeable share of adolescents, with additional health and comorbidity signals present in at-risk groups.
0.3%
0.3% of adolescents met criteria for eating disorder not otherwise specified (lifetime) in a meta-analysis of community
0.6%
0.6% of adolescents reported binge eating behaviors weekly or more often
6.8%
6.8% of adolescents reported not eating for 24 hours or more to lose weight in the past 12 months
1.8%
1.8% of adolescents aged 12–17 years in the US met criteria for binge eating disorder in a national analysis
3.5%
3.5% of adolescents with eating disorders had comorbid substance use disorder
0.5%
0.5% of high school students reported extreme binge eating with compensatory behaviors
source-verifiedncbi.nlm.nih.gov · cdc.gov · pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Elif Demirci. (2026, February 13). Eating Disorders In Adolescence Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/eating-disorders-in-adolescence-statistics
MLA
Elif Demirci. "Eating Disorders In Adolescence Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/eating-disorders-in-adolescence-statistics.
Chicago
Elif Demirci. 2026. "Eating Disorders In Adolescence Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/eating-disorders-in-adolescence-statistics.
Sources & references
42 datasets cited across this report
+23 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)