London woman shares recovery as eating disorder cases rise

CTV’s Lauren Stallone with Eating Disorder Awareness Day at Children’s Hospital where young people learn about body image in the digital age.

Nearly a decade ago Claire Tamminga was rushed to the emergency room when her parents noticed something was wrong.

“The eating disorder made me a very angry person,” said Tamminga. “That’s definitely not who I am.”

After experiencing symptoms of an eating disorder, Tamminga was admitted as an inpatient at the Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC).

“I didn’t want to be there,” said Tamminga. “I was angry with the team and their efforts.”

Tamminga is now in a much healthier place, crediting her recovery to the health professionals at LHSC.

“The biggest thing I’ve gained back is my personality,” said Tamminga. “My love for life and just being involved in so much around me that I missed out on when the eating disorder clouded my vision.”

To mark Child and Adolescent Eating Disorder Awareness Day, the Children’s Health Foundation at LHSC is highlighting a growing number of cases.

“One of the biggest changes we probably saw was during the covid-19 pandemic where there’s evidence that a lot of our patients were spending more time at home and spending more time on social media,” said Mariano Macias, an eating disorder specialist at LHSC. “The numbers started rising.”

Macias says evidence suggests social media promotes unrealistic body image expectations.

“All this information coming from different places without being properly assessed or accurately assessed is definitely affecting the prevalence of eating disorders,” said Macias.

He says it is crucial for health practitioners and parents to teach their children healthy habits when it comes to social media consumption, something Tamminga learned over time.

“What I’ve learned is that I just need to keep scrolling,” said Tamminga.