THIN

THIN

2006, Health  -   157 Comments
7.58
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Ratings: 7.58/10 from 118 users.

THINThe 2006 cinéma vérité documentary film, THIN, directed by Lauren Greenfield and distributed by HBO, is an exploration of The Renfrew Center in Coconut Creek, Florida; a 40-bed residential facility for the treatment of women with eating disorders. The film mostly revolves around four women with anorexia nervosa and/or bulimia and their struggles for recovery.

THIN is the centerpiece of a multi-faceted campaign designed to explore issues surrounding body image and eating disorders, including a companion book, traveling exhibition of Greenfield's work and a website.

Having already shot photographs at Renfrew for her book Girl Culture, Greenfield returned to the facility to direct THIN, her directorial debut, which she produced in collaboration with producer R.J. Cutler.

Living at the center for six months, Greenfield and director of photography Amanda Micheli received unrestricted access, filming not just the therapy sessions, mealtimes and daily weigh-ins that construct the highly structured routine of inpatients' daily lives, but also exploring their turbulent interpersonal relationships with each other, with family and with staff. Access to staff meetings allows us insight into the efforts of the Renfrew medical team and the complex tasks facing them.

The making of the documentary THIN was a continuation of a decade-long exploration of body image and the way the female body has become a primary expression of identity for girls and women in our time. I am intrigued by the way the female body has become a tablet on which our culture’s conflicting messages about femininity are written and rewritten.

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Douglas
Douglas
4 years ago

Watching this as part of my 3rd-year psychology science degree. Really puts into context the human dimension of anorexia as an eating disorder. I also got to see the beautiful personalities of human beings that are in a lot of distress and pain. Polly made me laugh on more than one occasion, she can somersault onto a bed like no other. Rather dismayed by the insurance aspect when it runs out, you're turfed out. It really eptiomises the huge inequalities that are evident in the USA (as an Aussie), to the extent it undermines client progress on their road to recovery. Is it just me or are the staff there have a bit of an us versus them mentality - hard to see the empathy at times.

Felicia
Felicia
4 years ago

Pollack “Polly” Williams committed suicide in 2008 with an overdose of sleeping pills. She was 33 years old.

Enitx Alfons Dorlim
Enitx Alfons Dorlim
9 years ago

An amazing and very, very disturbing film. Should be seen by everone living in a world where food is abundant.

Jlynn
Jlynn
10 years ago

I am 5'3 and have dropped as low as 70 pounds-I am now a consistent 80 but this is nowhere near healthy in any way. I imagine what I would do if my own daughter did this to herself-it would kill me. What kind of example am setting for her? Can I find it in me to let go of being so selfish to want to be thin so much that I would risk not being there for her later on for graduation, her wedding, her own children? I have struggled with both anorexia and bulimia since I was 14 (I am now 27). This disorder is so complex-you can't go cold turkey and avoid food like a drug. You need food to live and you have to learn to find a balance in it. Every day is a struggle for me but the stories from THIN such as the tube in the stomach to committing suicide over eating two slices of pizza-that is exactly how powerful this disease is. If there is anything I have learned that was stated here, it is that eating disorders are always a mask of something so much more. For me, the key to getting on the road to recovery was being ready to sacrifice being thin for being alive. The next step was searching for what it is that I am trying to so hard to mask with this destructive disorder. Work the 12 steps, it is the only way to truly work through to recovery. Once you finish the steps, do them again and continue doing them for the rest of your life.

mycial
mycial
10 years ago

I'm not comprehending why Polly is being removed from the center? I don't see anything that was so negative that she did, those types of "rehab, centers" have people coming in & out consistently. It's all about money, when I went in a drug so-call rehab center, it was MARTIAL LAW 24/7 camera's watching you. You had to sign your name while waiting in line for your food, the man would walk in on you while your taking a damn shower just to sign your name, everywhere you went you were being recorded. They had their favorites men & women were engaging in sex. But if you were their favorite no problem. I've been clean for 5 years now I will never go back to a rehab center a damn thing. It's like being in prison searching your belongings people stealing. I hope these women get better & never set foot back into this facility again. Get your life together & stop letting other people tell you what to do!

Neva
Neva
11 years ago

Seems to me that these clinics should have healthy staff. Just about all the professional staff members in this video are overweight (some, obese in fact) -- just the type of image that would be a turn-off to the patients.

facebook-568156876
facebook-568156876
11 years ago

I watched because even though I have heard about this disease and I have read about this disease it was the stories that, the real lives here, brought into context for me the real illness that their own words can't describe. Patterns of OCD.

han_nz
han_nz
11 years ago

The biggest thing i learned is that americas health system is terrible. The only reason people are discharged is due to their insurance running out - no wonder they all relapsed, they had not been treated successfully yet.
The health system is failing these women

ava
ava
11 years ago

I feel so bad for the poor people that were born with this condiction.I cant believe soon a large population of 7 year old kids will be annirex.

C.j. Avery
C.j. Avery
11 years ago

Something they could introduce is marijuana and THC products into their regime if the patient wishes due to the effect that it induces upon the user. it would help them eat their dinner and like it.

diredamsel
diredamsel
11 years ago

I haven't watched this documentary in years, but it made a huge impression on me when I was a recovering teenager. Those of you suffering, have hope. If you can get quality treatment sooner, your chances of lifetime recovery are far higher. For those of you being nasty, you are only further perpetuating the bullshit that these people already have to go through. Have some god damned compassion. I hope you never have to experience the living hell that is this. Remind yourself that this is an addiction and a deadly disorder.

Jane Doe
Jane Doe
11 years ago

This will be the last time I read any comments on any documentary. It's heart warming to see many supportive comments, but it's disgusting to see so many ignorant and nasty comments.

And I haven't even watched this yet.

Jack E. Jett
Jack E. Jett
11 years ago

Why do they let freaking obese people treat eating disorders.

That business is a big sham.

cr??py cupcake ?
cr??py cupcake ?
11 years ago

If it's about body image, then why do so many of them wear dowdy and frumpy clothes? I think that it's much deeper than that.

crystal_sheep
crystal_sheep
11 years ago

I've lived through 15 years of severe bulimia and fully recovered with the help of my boyfriend. And I feel very lucky to never have admitted myself to a clinic.
In this documentary, all they do is focus on food and control, which are exactly the things that anorexics/bulimics do anyway. I really felt sorry for all the girls in the video...
To overcome an eating disorder, you must dig deeper and face your feelings, not matter how unbearable they seem. Binging and purging (or not eating at all) are just a means to cope with despair.
Therefore, dealing with emotions and pain is the most important part of recovery. It's tough, but not impossible - if you have someone you love.

Anyway, that Renfrew Center fails big time!

telly stewart
telly stewart
11 years ago

of course these patiants aren't happy when they gain weight! cause i never see them working out. onc e they start to gain weight it will all be fat, and that will never look actractive. they need to be on a work out plan as well as a higher calorie meal plan, they must be miserable.

Angela Velazquez
Angela Velazquez
12 years ago

not the best doc about anorexia and bulimia ive seen but its not terrible. im not sure these women are truly being helped in this facility. it seems to be making them more obbsessive about food and weight. the women are attacking each other constantly rather than helping. its not a really effective therapy model.

Nadia Atz
Nadia Atz
12 years ago

sad,VERY sad! its hard to escape i and only people who live something like that can understand how pain and stressfull that is!

Monique Boulanger
Monique Boulanger
12 years ago

I showed this Docu to my 8yo Daughter who's got aspergers but keeps worrying about getting fat. Now, she has no trauma in her life. We gently raise her, BUT, because of her disorder, she has this driving NEED to be in control of all things all the time. So, Right now, we're battling with the beginning seeds of it. She's almost 5' tall and about 50lbs. I feed her, she doesn't want to. Heck for the past 3 days at school she's been ditching her food on the floor to get out of eating it. She can't hide food here at home. I showed her this documentary.

Question 1: "Does that look like fun?"
Answer 1: "No..."

Question 2: "Do they look like they have control?"
Answer 2: "No..."

Question 3: "What part hits you the hardest?"
Answer 3: "The girl with the hole in her belly to eat. I don't want that..."

I will bring this up with her therapist next time we go. I don't want my daughter going the way of Poly and the rest of the gang in this docu. :( (Especially the way of Poly)

I wonder if we can nip this in the bud as soon as we can, we can avoid it.

Tricia Petersen
Tricia Petersen
12 years ago

I may be completely off base here, but I can't see how this place helps anyone at all. First Polly is the golden child. Then all of a sudden she'd made out to be crap. Shelly goes from bad to being some type of hero because the staff made bad judgement calls about her and then felt guilty about it. Kicking people out over stupid infractions like that when this is supposed to be a mental health issue?! Turning people against each other rather than encouraging them to support each other in their closeness? They let someone go who clearly needs further help? I don't see this as a healthy environment at all

JKIS
JKIS
12 years ago

avd420 We are all deeply and truly sorry that you have had hard situations and experienced profound despair, however, this is inappropriate. I do have a degree in Psychology and Sociology, however, my objection is not on a scientific level, but a human level. I think it is time that you expressed these opinions in a place where people are not seeking support. Redefining the disorder seems very important to you, but redefining creates no lasting change on its own. I appreciate your insights and the time you have taken to express them fully. Nevertheless, please understand that having had difficulties in one’s life does not make a person an expert in all forms of trauma. No amount of internet research can help any one person predict all of the variables. Comparing hard lives makes no difference. Every situation deserves compassion no matter how it is defined. I hope you will consider beginning a clearly marked blog to post your views from this point on. You seem like a very intelligent person. Please consider my suggestion.

Meztini
Meztini
12 years ago

Jesus Christ!

dis·ease/di?z?z/
Noun: A disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, esp. one that produces specific signs or symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury.

I know everyone thinks that they can reinterpret and speculate on medical terminology but it doesn't work like that! Yes it is (technically by definition) a disease! And no, if you've never been through it you don't know what you're talking about, even my friends that have gone through my ED with me my whole life have no idea what they're talking about...

And since everyone's comparing notes- My background: Various trauma's growing up, ex drug addict (Heroin,crack,crystal meth and coke) which were all a symptom of my ED/mental health issues, still on methadone, still an alcoholic, still take drugs other than heroin, still got ED, still got untreated mental health issues (bipolar/schizotypal/OCD), and no one will employ me because of the methadone...

maryjane11
maryjane11
12 years ago

PS. avd420...... People in Africa don't have this disease because they are already starving..... if they DID have anorexia nobody would recognise it as anorexia because they would just see it as not having enough food to eat..... and BECAUSE there is not enough food to eat there a person wouldn't choose food as their form of control..... that's why it only occurs in countries where there is plenty to eat and food is considered a social and cultural practice.... in poor parts of Africa food is merely for survival.

Tasha McAffee
Tasha McAffee
12 years ago

I dont know if this is going to help anything or just cause more drama. But I'm 17 and have had an ED for 6 years now and yes my arms are covered in scares. I don't want to get in the argument that this is a disease or a choice but what I do want to say is there is pain. Its never just about getting thin, just like's its never about just getting high, there is ALWAYS a reason for it. I have had body image issues sense I was little. Sense I was little I have never been a human, never been something that someone should care for. I could't control what happened to me when I was a child, but I thought I could control what I ate and what my weight would be, even though in the end it controls you. This is not a pitty party or a its ok because we are all screwed up. But my issues, I was molested by my father for 6 years, molested by 3 other people that lived around us also. Raped by to of my boyfriends and sexually abused by a friend of the family. And i would agree that maybe i put myself in some of those situations. But those are where my issues came from. So deep down its not about being thin. Its about being "perfect" being WORTH perfection, having control in something in your life. I cry for help even! Trying to get people to see "maybe if you look so sick on the outside, they can see how much pain and "sickness" you are going threw on the inside. This is all in my opinion though. .

maryjane11
maryjane11
12 years ago

I AM DEVASTATED BY SOME OF THE IGNORANT COMMENTS HERE..... No wonder Polly killed herself......

I have suffered from Anorexia since the age of 13 - I am now 37. I am a lot better than I used to be now and haven't been hospitalised for the last 6 years - but have been through some HELLISH treatments in the past that made me worse, due to lack of understanding and compassion.

Anyway, to get to the point, understanding that it is NOT just about how you LOOK but rather how you FEEL inside should make people more compassionate. I never starved myself to look good - it was about expressing my inner pain because I didn't know how to do it verbally - I was only 5 years old when I was sexually abuse - for 4 years by an Uncle..... and I was confused and scared and embarrassed and didn't tell anyone until I was 24. My obsession with food and weight helped me to block out the flashbacks and the HORROR in my mind and my fear of the man who raped me as an innocent child...... Food gave me control over something when I felt I had lost control - and being thin was an attempt to "disappear" because I felt so disgusted with my body and so contaminated by this revolting man.....
PLEASE understand that you can compare people starving in Africa or India with an anorexic - I have a HUGE amount of compassion for people living in poverty, I have done charity work for them and am a human rights activist........ but comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges - the underlying causes are completely different and BOTH warrant compassion. Unless you feel that childhood sexual abuse does not warrant compassion then you should try to understand these women more deeply - they, like me, have EXTREME inner pain caused either by childhood sexual abuse (as is the case for many anorexic's) or some other trauma in their life.

I can see from the point of view of someone who knows little about the illness that it would appear selfish and attention seeking and just plain REDICULOUS (I even feel like that about myself sometimes) but there is much more to it...... if you are interested enough to read more about it you will realise that it really is much deeper than wanting to to be thin for appearance sake.

Brittany Gasiorowski
Brittany Gasiorowski
12 years ago

went to renfrew for anorexia with bulimic tendencies 2 years ago, left worse than I have ever been.... this documentary just shows how its method of treatment doesnt help at all

felicity_uk
felicity_uk
12 years ago

really don't see how this place is helping, they just take measurements and put food in front of them, how does that help?!

Rachael Ivanovic
Rachael Ivanovic
12 years ago

You have no idea what these women went through, no fuc*ing idea. Until you know and lived through it, who the fu*k do you think you are judging?

norlavine
norlavine
12 years ago

Very harrowing, an extreme addiction. What a terrible system this 'world power' has for allowing therapy only until health insurance cover runs out.The only form of 'therapy' I witnessed was the staff playing out their own little power struggles on the physically weak and emotionally vulnerable. This severe and sometimes lethal disorder is little understood and if tattling on your few friends who share similar circumstances is supposed to be mood enhancing , then God help us all....

Diana McCaughey
Diana McCaughey
12 years ago

Some people here really dont know what they are talking about. I have been through what these girls have been through. I was at the same eating disorder clinic as them. An eating disorder is not a choice. Getting better IS. It is the hardest thing I have ever done. I didnt wake up one day and say that I wanted to be sick and have an eating disorder. Most people don't. If the answer was to just eat, then everyone would get better. it goes so much deeper than that and it takes a lot of hard work. Most people can eat and not think about it afterwards. Someone with an eating disorder obsesses and can feel like food is ruining their life and feel like it is going to kill them. Obviously the reality is, that not having the food will kill you. SOunds so simple, but when you are in the wraps of it, it seems to complicated. People who don't know what they are talking about or just havent been through it, should be really careful when posting on sites like this. You never know who is reading and when you post something like "these girls should just die" someone who is sick may be reading that and take you literally. DO you want someone's death on your shoulders? If you do, then you are the sick one.Diana MN

Colleen Foster
Colleen Foster
12 years ago

Some of the comments below are incredibly disturbing, the kind of things middle school boys would crack as jokes in health class. An eating disorder is a disease, an addiction where the drug of choice is food and it is restricted, binged, and/or purged as a means of coping with feelings. It is not vanity, a lifestyle, or a choice. The outward symptoms are manifestations of extremely intense emotional turmoil. Just like alcoholics don't drink just for shits 'n giggles, sufferers of eating disorders don't engage in their behaviors without constant sadness, guilt, fear, and anger.
Recovery for anyone with anorexia, bulimia, etc. is a lifelong, jagged process, already an uphill battle, and the "six feet below" comments are absolutely inappropriate and unnecessary.

L0LAW0NKA
L0LAW0NKA
12 years ago

It's true though. You have to admit that everyone involved would be happier if those girls just ended up six feet below. Then everyone who isn't a LOSER, could just get back to their lives. :)

kirastianity
kirastianity
12 years ago

Honestly, watching these girls made me pray to God that they would do the world a favor and wake up Dead.

DiamondOna
DiamondOna
12 years ago

Ok, then. If they're so miserable.. why don't they just commit suicide? It will solve all of their problems Guaranteed.

Seriously, idiot people like these girls deserve to die.

Mandee Vidal
Mandee Vidal
12 years ago

you people must understand that these are very, very sick women. that poor 15-year-old barely stands a chance at survival. it is society that has done this to them, not them laughing in the face of society. pick up a book and look up the word 'disorder.' it is a constant struggle and they will be in my constant thoughts and prayers. just be grateful that you are not in the position that they are because they understand they affect many people around them and live with that guilt and worry everyday that survive. i hope they recover in the very near future. my sincere wishes- best of luck and thanks to the producer that mad this issue public and known that eating disorders are prevalent and serious.

xcvb
xcvb
12 years ago

Spoilt and self obsessed, these childre....sorry grown women need to take a look at the world and the really tough times people go through in it. It makes me incredibly angry that these people sit in a building and b**** about the people that are caring for them be it the nurse who has to smile in the face of a sneer or the father who has to fork out money or the mother who has to beg on her knees to help a daughter who breaks the rules and laughs in the face of society, I'm quite honestly disgusted. These people show no remorse, they thrive on attention, childish behaviors and create fantasies around why they don't eat all because this is a 'psychiatric disorder' and so the circle will continue. Why are they all cooped up bouncing off one another making the situation worse, surely they should be individually placed in communities of healthy women in a normal working environment or maybe the opposite put them with people who are worse off. The whole point of this disorder is that they want to be locked up in a prison and given rules to break to be noticed and given a disorder, round and round we go. These people need a reality check, send them to Africa or put them to work as aid workers maybe then they will get out of their little bubbles and use their lives for good. I am sick of the way current society has made it so these people are allowed to make this choice; they are bored, arrogant, lazy individuals who have created a disorder to gain attention in this over populated planet where everyone strives to be noticed and why because its all too easy to let it happen- well congratulations girls you have been noticed, I only hope that people who have real traumas in their lives who really are 'lost, in pain or hopeless' don't acknowledge your existence and continue to inspire the rest of us.

Jacalyn Nolan
Jacalyn Nolan
12 years ago

I am astounded at the comments here! This is a DISORDER! It is NOT about being thin or losing weight! It is about getting control of something because you feel lost or in pain or hopeless. These women (and other women and men) do NOT choose this, and would never wish it on their worst enemies. It is HELL, make no mistake. This is a psychiatric disorder. People with eating disorders are not stupid or dumb, they are in pain and coping the best way they know how!

Misa Amane
Misa Amane
12 years ago

I just watched the whole thing, and my advice to those who really want to lose weight is to MOVE TO AFRICA, preferably Tanzania. Like in darwin's Nightmare: no food+ aids= weight loss= slow, painful death. :)

Misa Amane
Misa Amane
12 years ago

Stupid people, really. You should care about your image enough that you care about YOURSELF. Don't stop eating. You can eat all you want as ong you work out. Join a fitness club. Practice a sport. Go shopping everyday. Walk your dog. Race your brother. Beat up your boyfriend. Be happy, damn it. If you don't want to live, then just die. But don't torture yourself. That's just stupid and a waste of time, space and life.

Neda Babic
Neda Babic
13 years ago

At first , I thought they were spoiled, confused young women but toward the end of the film I realized that their parents were mainly to blame for this obsession with food. Did they really think that their behavior when these women were little girls would have no consequences??!!! And yes... father who blames Utah and vegetables for his daughter's problems... Their obvious problem is just a manifestation of much deeper issues and it's too sad to see that there is no help or understanding from those who caused everything:(

Abamovich
Abamovich
13 years ago

If they all got their wish and were as thin as they want to be, then what?

Like a lot of things, if they got to their illusive state of thin and stayed there, they would be bitterly disappointed. Life isn't better that way at all, the problems are all there still, exactly the same. The drive to be thin is a cover, it keeps them preoccupied so they don't have to deal with reality perhaps. Working on the self esteem is huge so they can handle their lives without the disorder, without running to this crazy idea of perfection that will never arrive. It's a pointless exercise, but they have to understand that on a subconscious level, until then, it will take a lot of work. It's like they're asleep and not facing up to reality as long as they are chasing the illusion. So what if a few extra pounds are gained, or even if they become overweight, it really doesn't mean anything to their lives.

Sadly, they have been given false messages most of their lives and this is hard to shake off. The media holds up these images and it is all just an illusion, but young girls are so susceptible to believing those illusions. They believe their lives will somehow be perfect, but they won't. They are too young to recognize the media is there to simply sell things, so it sets up impossible standards, which even models can't live up to. Even Cindy Crawford once said that it takes her many hours and a tonne of make up and a whole team of experts to look like Cindy Crawford. She only wished she looked as good as the made up and airbrushed pictures. How on earth can everyone else expect to live up to that? That just isn't reality for the vast majority and they're doing just fine.

katrina
katrina
13 years ago

just like an addict, I am in recovery. I struggle every day. Having an eating disorder is so much more (personally) than whether I am fat or thin. For me it's been my escape, my way of dealing with and regaining control of my life.. My way of compensating for things that are out of my control.
I was schocked, at 15, when I discovered that the man whom I had thought was my biological father all along was not, in fact, my biological father. Instantly, I had a complete loss of identity.

it had nothing to do with the fact that I felt fat... I just wanted to die.
it has, in effect, snowballed into a bigger issue, but the same underlying issues "trigger" the eating disorder.. When I start feeling that my life is beyond my ability to control.... ...and it's taken 12 years, to finally get a grasp on my identity, accept who I am whether I ever find and meet my biological father or not...

not all cases are self-centered... Not all eating disorders start because of the want to be thin....

Inga
Inga
13 years ago

sally looked so good after therapy

Inga
Inga
13 years ago

what kind of institution is this ?. They act like bithces kikck her out ! why she needs help. I hate these women for kicking her out she will break down over this.

Jenna
Jenna
13 years ago

These perception problems aren't just limited to those who have eating disorders, though. I remember throughout all of high school I felt fat. I always thought "I need to lose another 10 pounds or so". Now that I'm older and I look at my pictures from back then, I was so skinny! I still ate (fairly healthfully too) and everything, but it was a constant stressor, and I always hated going out because I was afraid people would look at me and think I was fat.

I didn't know back then about airbrushing or anything. I just knew that women were supposed to lack definition. As someone with natural curves, pulling off that "Twiggy" look was impossible, without starving myself. This is something that's really starting to grip our culture. These women are just the ones who have taken it all the way to the extreme--I know plenty of people my age now who chronically under eat.

kate
kate
13 years ago

This is an absolutely devastating documentary. I'm using it in my university paper in regards to why those afflicting with eating disorders should seek individual therapy before treatment centers. The staff are inconsiderate, cold heart, lack emotion and compassion. The woman are disrespected, treated as though they are liars and fakes. Their emotions are disregarded and they are mocked for being childlike. The fact is, when someone suffers from an eating disorder they are suck back in time, in a childlike state, not eating somehow reinforces the idea that they cannot care for themselves, keeps them dependent on others, keeps them stuck. In order to heal, one must have help from a professional to go back to that time, either directly or indirectly. This is painful, needs to be supported and respected by the professional, needs to be reinforced that it's okay to feel the way they do and they can only move forward by dealing with their feelings. The part where the staff sit around with one another and laugh at the woman in the clinic makes me sick to my stomach. They should be fired from their jobs. Inpatient clinics do nothing to heal and teach woman and men to take care of themselves, they only stuff terrible food down their throats in attempts to make them gain weight. Low weight is only a symptom of the problems the women are actually dealing with. I could say so much more.

MLC
MLC
13 years ago

The only thing that helped me and prevented me from getting to the point where these girls were was my faith in God. Everyday is a new day to start fresh, a new chace and opportunity. We should live life to the fullest and remember that we are only fooling our selves. Having an ed really holds one back from having a life at all it is consuming an obsession that controls your mind.

Dogu
Dogu
13 years ago

Did you notice the zoloft door label and then the prozac clock at part 3 6:30. Disgusting

Dogu
Dogu
13 years ago

How sad they give Polly a nutritionally void sugar covered cupcake for her birthday. Bleached flour, preservatives, dye, and other carcinogens are not good food. No wonder she doesn't want to eat it.

LonelyWolf
LonelyWolf
13 years ago

Well...I watched it and I so wished I could feel or say something kind.

I was born and grew up in a Communist country where we begged for a scrap of bread or a drop of milk. After my father was killed, we lived on roots and boiled nettle. After my step ather was also killed, we lived on what others threw in the trash. I was skinny as a rail, sick as a stray dog and unable to chew and swallow whatever I could get to eat, but not because I didn't want to; it was rotten, moldy, worm infested. Humblness and involuntary starvation is a very good deterent to whinning.

I think Americans feel very entitled and spoiled, self centered and eager to diagnose everything as a disease. I think there are a lot of mind games played here and with such freedom to play, comes abuse of privileges. It is a privilege to eat and strive, not a right to be abused and money made off of it.
Just like the kids diagnosed with ADD & ADHD and medicated, eating disorders are encouraged and celebrated. Any abnormal behavior is being rewarded and analyzed to death...literarily to death.

I am so sorry for Polly's relatives, but I blame them for supporting and encouraging her behavior. She on the other hand got what she wanted. FAME. Only the dead are famous, the living are average Joes who just try to survive without counting calories. The same goes for the overweight individuals. Reality shows nowadays encourage stupidity, gluttony, excess, Jackass behavior on one hand, and then, criticizes (, HELPFUL ((AHEM..))and analyzes on talk shows (Dr. Phil, Ophra, etc.)and suck the finances off those dumb enough to fall for all the contradictions in their lives.
Americans need to wake up and get informed, get balanced, be their own person instead of sheep mentality dominating...
I believe schools and parents are also to blame; perfect example were the mothers who themselves had issues. Americans victimize their own future generations.

Oh, I do ask forgiveness of those who are bothered by my misspellings; I have worked my ass off all day to bring food to the table and I feel lucky I can appreciate the bountiful choices we have in America...we just need to be a bit brighter rather then fall for drama appetites (no pun).
When my daughter started on that road, I gave a hard choice: live or die. Work out, be active, give to others and it will all fall into place. She chose to live sans 60 lb. by keeping herself occupied with constructive and productive activities, instead of self importance or narcissistic moments. I would be crushed if she chose the latter, but there is no other way in my world where I grew up. You live or you die.
I hope beyond hope that the girls in this video find the peace and self appreciation one day. They all deserve a nice vacation to India or Africa...broaden their horizons a little...expand their little selfish world...just saying...