Health Insights · Mental Health
Eating disorders: recognising them and finding support
Eating disorders are serious mental health conditions, not lifestyle choices or vanity. They affect people of every age, gender, background and body size — and you do not need to look unwell, or to have been struggling for a long time, to deserve help. Treatment works, and it works better the sooner it starts.
Call 999 or seek emergency care if there is
- chest pain, palpitations or fainting
- confusion, drowsiness or seizures
- vomiting blood, or severe abdominal pain
- thoughts of harming yourself or ending your life
- inability to keep any food or fluid down
- someone who is very weak, cold, or unable to stand unaided
Eating disorders carry real physical risk, including to the heart, and that risk is not predictable from appearance. If you are worried about someone, act on the worry. Beat's free helpline is 0808 801 0677, open every day. If you are having thoughts of harming yourself or ending your life, help is available now. Call 999 or go to an emergency department if you have already harmed yourself or feel unable to stay safe. Otherwise call Samaritans free on 116 123 at any hour, text SHOUT to 85258, or call NHS 111 and select the mental health option.
What they can look like
Eating disorders take many forms — restricting food, binge eating, purging, or a combination — and some involve intense anxiety about the type or texture of food rather than about weight at all. What they share is that eating, food or body image has come to dominate life and cause distress.
- food, eating or body shape taking up a great deal of mental space
- eating feeling frightening, shameful or out of control
- strict rules about food, or intense distress when routines are disrupted
- avoiding meals with other people, or withdrawing socially
- exercising in a way that feels compulsory rather than chosen
- checking or avoiding mirrors, scales or photographs repeatedly
- physical effects: feeling cold, tired, dizzy, disturbed periods, dental problems, gut symptoms
- mood changes, irritability, poor concentration, and difficulty sleeping
You do not have to be underweight to be unwell
This is the single most damaging misconception. Most people with eating disorders are not underweight, and some of the most medically dangerous behaviours occur at any body size. People are routinely turned away, or delay asking, because they think they are not 'ill enough'. There is no threshold you have to reach. If your relationship with food or your body is causing you distress or taking over your life, that is reason enough — and asking earlier makes recovery considerably more likely.
If you are worried about yourself
- You do not have to have decided to change before asking for help. Ambivalence is normal and expected.
- You will not be weighed or examined without your agreement, and you can ask not to be told numbers.
- You can bring someone with you, and you can write things down if saying them aloud is too hard.
- Nothing you describe will be judged. Clinicians see this often and it is a health problem, not a moral one.
- Beat's helpline (0808 801 0677) is free, staffed by people who understand, and you do not have to be in crisis to call.
If you are worried about someone else
Helps
- Choose a private, calm moment, away from mealtimes
- Say what you have noticed and that you care, using 'I' rather than 'you'
- Ask how they are feeling, and then listen without fixing
- Offer to help them make an appointment, or to go with them
- Keep offering — people often say no several times first
Avoid
- Comments about weight, appearance or how much they are eating
- Framing it as a phase, a choice, or attention-seeking
- Ultimatums, monitoring or policing meals
- Discussing diets, calories or exercise around them
- Giving up because the first conversation went badly
What treatment involves
- Psychological therapy is the main treatment, tailored to the type of eating disorder — there are specific, evidence-based therapies for each.
- A physical health check alongside, because eating disorders affect the heart, bones, hormones and teeth. This is monitoring, not judgement.
- Family involvement is central for children and young people, and helpful for many adults.
- Medication may be used for coexisting anxiety or depression, and for some specific presentations.
- Specialist eating disorder services for more intensive treatment. Referral is available at any body weight.
- Recovery is usually not linear, and setbacks are part of it rather than evidence of failure.
A note on this website
You will find leaflets here about weight, diet and exercise. If your relationship with food is difficult, those pages may not be helpful reading, and there is no need to look at them. Please talk to us instead — general advice about eating and weight is not appropriate when an eating disorder may be present, and we will not give it.
Why come to us. The hardest part is the first appointment, and we will make it as straightforward as we can. We offer unhurried, confidential appointments 7 days a week, with the option not to be weighed or told numbers, and a female clinician available on request. We carry out the physical health checks safely and without comment, and refer to specialist eating disorder services promptly — at any body weight. You are welcome to bring someone with you.
Private assessment and support for eating disorders in London
Eating disorders are serious but treatable, and early support improves recovery. A private GP in East London can assess your physical health and our private mental health clinic in London and psychology service provide specialist support, coordinating care where needed. This is a sensitive topic; if you are struggling, please reach out — and if you are physically unwell or at risk, seek urgent help by calling 111 or 999. Tower Bridge Hospital is on Whitechapel Road in East London, a short journey from Canary Wharf and the City, with same-day appointments and no referral required.
Eating disorders in London: common questions
What are the signs of an eating disorder?
Preoccupation with food, weight or shape, restrictive eating, bingeing or purging, and physical or mood changes can all be signs.
Why does physical assessment matter?
Eating disorders can affect the heart, bloods and other systems, so a physical check is an important part of safe care.
Is support confidential?
Yes — care is confidential and compassionate, at a pace that feels safe for you.
When is it urgent?
Fainting, chest pain, very low intake, or feeling unable to cope needs urgent assessment — call 111 or 999.
You do not need to be 'ill enough' to come
Confidential, unhurried, 7 days a week. Bring someone if it helps.