Expert: Nafeesah - 3/6/2009

Question
Hi my friend is 19 years old and has had anorexia with bulimic tendences before but recovered after a hospital stay.
However Ive noticed her slipping back into her old ways - only eating soup, locking herself in her room all day, drinking endless amounts of water, turning the tap on when shes in the bathroom and obviously losing weight.
Im concerned shes slipping back but she has liver disease and Im worried not eating will harm her.
do you know if eating disorders can damage or cause problems with the liver?
thankyou

Answer
Yes eating disorders can cause serious problems with most of the organs in the body by throwing off the hormones they function on and can cause them to not work properly. If your friend has liver disease this is serious she's weakening her body by falling back into her old ways. She needs long term help like a treatment facility where she can stay for a couple months to get the help she needs.