New Focus On Eating Disorders

Fans of the Olsen twins were blindsided by this week's news that Mary-Kate Olsen has checked into a rehab center, reportedly because of an eating disorder.

But a lot of women know just how easy it is to develop that kind of problem, especially if you're constantly in the public eye.

Atoosa Rubenstein, editor-in-chief of Seventeen magazine, which is featuring the Olsen twins on its cover this month, tells The Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith the key is to remember that stars are real people with real problems.

"I think it's our responsibility," Rubenstein says. "That's one of the reasons why we did put them on two separate covers, as opposed to together: To humanize them. One thing, I think, that's happening right now, especially as the tabloid culture is growing in popularity, is we dehumanize these stars.

"And the thing we forget is a lot of these stars, like the Olsen twins, like Britney Spears, are young girls," she says. And so when we talk about their bodies all the time, we are sending our children the wrong message. "We wouldn't do that to our daughter. But yet, we do it to the star."

Thumbing through the magazine, one finds many ads promoting a particular body type and look. Even the Olsen twins have their own cosmetic line. So what is really the message?

There is nothing wrong with wanting to aspire to have a certain look, Rubenstein says but notes it gets tricky.

She says, "I remember not so long ago, about a year ago, in the tabloid media, there were tons of pictures of the Olsen twins on vacation. You could tell it was a stalker-azzi shot. There were pictures of them running around the beach with their family on vacation in their bikinis. I thought that was really invasive. And I could see how that could make a young girl like her feel funny."

Having had problems with eating issues herself, Rubenstein says, "I think that the message that I hope people take from this is to get out of the culture of saying, 'Oh, you look so thin; Oh, you look so pretty,' to our daughters, to our friends and start recognizing each other for the smart things that we do, for our integrity, for our kindness, for other things other than the superficial. Because if a girl like Mary Kate Olsen, who is worshipped by so many for being so beautiful, struggles with this, imagine an ordinary girl."

Clinical psychologist Robin Goodman agrees. She tells co-anchor Hannah Storm the disorder is not about eating; it's about self-esteem.

She says, "There are a lot of things parents can do in terms of how they talk to kids, in terms of the vocabulary they use."

She notes that fathers have a big influence on their daughters by what they say to their wife and to their daughters. "It's how they talk about their daughters, what they talk about, what they think is attractive in a female," Goodman explains. She suggests that parents talk about images in news/media and point out that not everyone is perfect - that they don't need to strive for that look, that they're fine as they are, as long as they're staying healthy.

She also encourages parents to be proactive and use the Olsen case to talk to their children, both girls and boys, about it. "It's not just one conversation. Parents have to be vigilant about this issue everywhere and even at younger and younger ages," she says.

So if your young child is a fan of Mary-Kate Olsen and has heard the news, Goodman recommends pointing out that the star is having a health problem. "Say that she's not healthy. And she's not healthy because she doesn't eat enough and weigh enough. One thing you really always want to focus on is the fact that this is about health, not just diet. And that you can't be healthy and do all sorts of things you want to do as a kid - run and concentrate and sleep well - if you're not eating right," she says.

With older children, who may be struggling with this disorder, it is important to remember that they may at first deny that there is a problem.

Goodman explains, "They're avoiding things, people and food. And they're making excuses for these kinds of things. What they are doing is an attempt to control different aspects of their lives. The things the parents aren't seeing is that it's a combination of biological, psychological and social factors that are all coming together sometimes to create this out-of-control way of eating as a way to, in some ways, define their self, manage some stress, whether it's with family or friends or the stress of growing up and becoming a girl into a woman. That's sometimes very difficult."

If you suspect your child has a problem, Goodman suggests not forcing him or her to eat (the child may feel criticized, no matter what the comment is) but seeking outside help from a doctor, a nutritionist or a therapist.

She says, "The problem is that it's one of the leading causes of death, in terms of psychiatric illnesses, in kids. So this is not just a phase that they're going through. It's not just, oh, they have odd food preferences. This is a really serious problem. But kids can get help and the family needs to know how to talk about it in a really good and productive way."