Over £32,000 spent by families to support eating disorder treatment

Families on average spend over £32,000 on travel to clinics, special food, lost time at work and other expenses while supporting their loved one through treatment for eating disorders, research by Beat, the UK’s eating disorder charity has found, who are calling for more support for families affected by eating disorders. 

Beat’s analysis of x survey respondents also found that 44% of mothers and 31% of fathers described themselves as ‘extremely badly’ affected by the wait for their son or daughter to access treatment. The same research found that on average, it takes sufferers over 18 months to realise they have an eating disorder and over a year following this before they seek help. The research also finds an average wait of 6 months between sufferers first visiting a GP and receiving treatment.

Families can form a vital part of someone’s support network as they go through recovery and clinical guidance repeatedly recommends the appropriate involvement of family in the treatment for these serious mental illnesses that affect 1.25 million people in the UK. Despite this recommendation Beat’s research shows that this is not the case.