Eating disorder recovery in a diet culture world

Eating disorder recovery in a diet culture world

From Short Wave by NPR

April 21, 2026 · 14 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the complexities of eating disorders and recovery in the context of diet culture, featuring insights from experts and advocates.

Eating disorders are complicated illnesses that skyrocketed among teenagers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pediatrician Eva Trujillo says they "literally rewire the brain," decrease brain size, and make it harder to concentrate and to regulate emotions. Malnutrition can slow the metabolism, impact bone density and even lead to cardiac arrest. But Eva says, with the right treatment, people can also recover fully. She's the president of the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals and co-founder of Comenzar de Nuevo , a leading treatment facility in Latin America. Today on the show, host Emily Kwong talks about the physical and mental impacts of eating disorders with Dr. Trujillo and Moorea Friedman, a teen mental health advocate and host of the podcast Balancing Act . Plus, how to recover in a world steeped in diet culture. (encore) Want us to cover more mental health topics? Tell us by emailing shortwave@npr.org! We'd love to know what you want to hear from us! Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of…

People in this episode

Host: Emily Kwong

Guests: Eva Trujillo, Moorea Friedman

Topics covered

  • eating disorders
  • mental health
  • diet culture
  • recovery
  • COVID-19 impact

Keywords

  • eating disorders
  • recovery
  • diet culture
  • mental health
  • COVID-19
  • pediatrician
  • treatment

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals, Comenzar de Nuevo, NPR

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