Black Women's Silent Battle with Eating Disorders: Exploring Eating Disorders Among Black Women and the Barriers to Recognition and Treatment

An eating disorder is a complex mental illness that manifests through disordered eating habits and behaviors. Awareness concerning disordered eating behavior has increased within the last decade; Eating disorders have often been primarily associated with affluent white women, even though women of all races and socioeconomic backgrounds are affected. Black women, in particular, tend not to appear in mainstream discussions due to cultural narratives and treatment frameworks. This study will examine the barriers that Black women encounter in acknowledging and treating eating disorders including sociocultural implications, and medical bias. In pursuing a mixed-method approach, data collection from structured interviews with 30 Black Canadian women 18-40 years of age was combined with a secondary analysis of existing research literature on eating disorders and racial disparity in mental health care. This analysis takes into consideration the cognitive effect of societal expectations of women’s bodies and institutionalized medical bias, both of which contribute to underdiagnosis and misrepresentation of eating disorders in Black women. Preliminary findings indicate that stereotypes surrounding Black women’s bodies, combined with cultural attitudes toward food and weight, significantly obscure Black women’s experiences with mental health care. Culturally competent interventions that include and advance recognition, prevention, and treatment strategies need to focus on Black women’s experiences with urgency. Closing these disparities will strengthen efforts toward a more equitable and nuanced understanding of the detrimental effects of eating disorders on Black women. In the long term, this study aims to convey the need for increased access to treatment and dialogues around the intersection of health, race, and gender.