PARANAQUE City 2nd District Rep. Joy Myra Tambunting has filed a bill that aims to promote awareness of eating disorders and help afflicted students.

House Bill 9186 or the proposed Eating Disorders Awareness, Prevention and Education Act mandates mandates the Departmnent of Education, the Commission on Higher Education and the Department of Health to provide programs to identify students with eating disorders; increase awareness of such disorders and train educators such as teachers, school nurses, school social workers, coaches, school counselors, and administrators on effective eating disorder prevention and assistance methods.

Tambunting said that there has been an increase in the number of children suffering from eating disorders.

She said that eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and others have detrimental health consequences such as obesity, heart disease, gall bladder disease, diabetes, heart failure, kidney failure, osteoporosis, and death.

“Anorexia nervosa has the highest mortality rate of all psychiatric disorders — making a young woman 12 times more likely to die than other women her age without anorexia,” Tambunting said in her explanatory note.

Under the bill, the secretary of DepEd and the chairman of CHED, in consultation with the Health secretary, will carry out a program to develop, distribute and promote the broadcasting of public service announcements to improve public awareness and promote the identification and prevention of eating disorders.