United States are female, and it is estimated that from 0.5 percent-to-one-percent of American females aged 14-to-18 years old meet the full criteria for diagnosis of anorexia nervosa. The incidence of anorexia nervosa among adolescents in the United States, however, is increasing (Felker and Stivers, 1994, p. 821). An increase in the risk of developing anorexia nervosa exists among first-degree biological relatives of anorexics (American Psychiatric Association, 1994, p. 543).
A combination of factors influence the development of anorexia nervosa (Felker and Stivers, 1994, p. 822). Among these factors are perfectionism as a part of a person's psychological character, a society that emphasizes thinness, and a family that manifests depression. The societal value that emphasizes thinness together with perfectionism on the part of the individual person leads to an obsession with body image that leads to the development of anorexia nervosa by a substantial proportion of at-risk persons (Hsu and Lee, 1993, pp. 1466-1471)
...