My younger sister, who is also has type 1 diabetes, told me to read the latest issue of People magazine, she's all fired up about it. The article tells the story of a young woman with type 1 who struggled for years with what is now labeled, "Diabulimia". Erin was fired up about these young woman risking their health to be skinny. I reminded her of her own eating disorder, of my own eating disorder (long ago...) and how by drawing attention to this form of disordered eating, People magazine is helping young women with diabetes.

I was shocked when I first came across a study that showed young women with type 1 diabetes were twice as likely to have an eating disorder than their peers without diabetes. Why hadn't someone warned me of this when I was a teenager and throwing up my food in public bathrooms?

"Diabetes is such a set-up for eating disorders. People must be conscious all the time of what they eat, then they feel guilty for straying from their diet plan." says Margaret Wilkman, RN, MPH, CDE from Duke University.

It all made sense. I remembered standing in front of the candy display at a mini-mart in high school, my blood sugar low, my hands shaky, and a friend saying, "Hey, you're not allowed to eat that stuff!" Bad girl, bad food. Water and nuts for you only. Or the times when I'd splurge on something, like pizza for dinner, and then regret it as my blood sugar was first low, then high later in the night. Food is too often a science, not a source of pleasure.

So even though it makes my sister angry that these girls are risking their health to be skinny, I'm glad the news is getting attention. Even if it is in People. I hope that bringing increased awareness to this form of disordered eating in diabetics will decrease the number of victims.