I think most of the posts on this thread are completely misunderstanding eating disorders.
Eating disorders are an attempt to take control of one’s life, and are usually exercised by people who feel very not in control. They often manifest with accompanying mental illnesses such as depression, Obsessive Compulsive disorder, or others.
They are not caused by having too little food around, or not enough parental guidance on what to eat.
They are probably caused by a history of far too much parental “guidance” (read: criticism) of eating choices.
Health: we are not disagreeing, I didn’t mean to equate the two psychologically or physiologically.