It can also cause all sorts of health problems. I had a friend who has knee issues now. I'd rather my daughter do something safer. There are too many issues with ballet.

+100 Have known several young ladies with eating disorders. Among them, 1 did ballet. 2 did equestrian. 1 swimmer. 1 runner. A few did no sports or dance at all. They all could be described as "higher-SES, type A, perfectionist, competitive girls." I'd add anxiety prone.

Anonymous wrote:Ballet has more than its fair share of higher-SES, type A, perfectionist, competitive girls. Just like gymnastics, where 100% attention to detail is required, and minute, particular movements are practiced for hours and hours every day.

I’d like to see the eating disorder stats for ballet vs gymnastics, diving and long-distance running. I bet it’s a lot closer.

Anonymous wrote:Prevalence in one group does not excuse its existence in another.

No it doesn’t. But it helps put it in context. It takes a certain personality type to succeed at ballet and it turns out that that particular personality is more prone to suffer from eating disorders, in other similar activities and in the general population.

Anonymous wrote:I am a former ballet dancer that also had an eating disorder. The same piece of my personality that developed a love for ballet fed right into the eating disorder. Since I was 4 years old I loved the codified technique of ballet, the clear rules, the discipline, the quest for perfection. I loved it and begged and begged to keep increasing my classes until I was in a professional track. It was easy to hide an eating disorder when they are so common in that world and you are wearing pink tights and a leotard seven days a week, it makes sense that you are going to be careful what you eat. I haven't had a child ask to take ballet yet so I don't know what I'll do, but I would probably try to steer them to other forms of dance rather than a straight ballet experience and will look for a studio with a strong awareness of eating disorders.

And this is the nub of it, people.

This former dancer has an absolutely critical perspective.

Understand that anorexia is a mental health disorder. Children are born with genetic predispositions to it, like any other mental health disorder. A greater number of these children will be drawn to ballet, with its emphasis on certain body lines, because it fits their personality.

Since mental health predispositions runs in families, if your child has close blood relatives with anorexia, you will have to be extra vigilant about activities that feed the disorder.

This means you don't need to worry as much if your child is healthy and has no relatives with any kind of OCD, severe anxiety or anorexia (all related). Anorexia is not "catching", if you see what I mean. It can only develop i the right conditions if you are born with a certain set of genes, which we have not yet identified.

I am a former ballet dancer that also had an eating disorder. The same piece of my personality that developed a love for ballet fed right into the eating disorder. Since I was 4 years old I loved the codified technique of ballet, the clear rules, the discipline, the quest for perfection. I loved it and begged and begged to keep increasing my classes until I was in a professional track. It was easy to hide an eating disorder when they are so common in that world and you are wearing pink tights and a leotard seven days a week, it makes sense that you are going to be careful what you eat. I haven't had a child ask to take ballet yet so I don't know what I'll do, but I would probably try to steer them to other forms of dance rather than a straight ballet experience and will look for a studio with a strong awareness of eating disorders.

Yes, we are aware of this (who wasn’t???). As a result, we have chosen a much more relaxed school where the focus is on positivity, inclusion and love of dance. Other styles are also taught. My girls won’t attain high-level ballet success or advancement but they have had a great experience and maybe they will continue to dance as college students in a low-key setting.

Prevalence in one group does not excuse its existence in another.

Ballet has more than its fair share of higher-SES, type A, perfectionist, competitive girls. Just like gymnastics, where 100% attention to detail is required, and minute, particular movements are practiced for hours and hours every day.

I’d like to see the eating disorder stats for ballet vs gymnastics, diving and long-distance running. I bet it’s a lot closer.

I’m aware of it. DD11 has a passion for ballet and some natural talent for it but we try to minimize the pressure and risk by sticking with a slightly lower-key ballet school where most of the kids, if they choose to continue with dance, do so in college vs trying to get placed in a professional company. (i.e. We’re not at MYB or TWSB and don’t intend to.) At DD’s school, the oldest girls generally have very athletic body types, like you’d find in any higher level athletic team, and there’s a focus on healthy eating. Just one example: for dress rehearsals and performances, the parents of the older kids put together a buffet of food and snacks so the dancers stay fueled. There’s not a pattern where the thinnest girls get the best parts. “Thin” is not the goal, ability is. And ability requires maintaining a healthy weight and energy level.

If you didn’t know ballet dancers all have eating disorders, I’m a little worried about other things you might not be picking up on. Yes, many of us focus on sports and other dance forms because of how crazy the ballet world is. It’s cute for preschoolers and then onto soccer.

Anonymous wrote:It is not disrespectful. It is fact. Eating disorders hit ballet dancers at 3x the rate of the general public.

Exactly.

No, I’m not worried about it in particular.
But unrelated to dance I go out of my way to try to help my kids have a healthy body image and that starts with how I treat myself.

Ballet was toxic about weight from the start. I was six and already being shamed for “needing a size medium” and told to lose significant weight. Yes, by first grade an eating disorder was encouraged. This was the start of my struggle with bulimia.

I vowed never to let my daughter do ballet. Of course she wants to. And does not have a “dancers body”.

Yes, this is concerning, but we are proactive. My daughter is passionate about ballet and dances in a pre-pro program. It greatly alleviates her anxiety, which is another concern of ours. To her, ballet is almost a therapy. She sees a nutritionist.

I've also found that it is helpful for her to be able to see how the professionals eat backstage - and they definitely eat, and heartily. She knows that those who have made ballet their livelihood have to nourish their bodies to deliver results and I have found that modeling them has been a good influence on her. I realize not all ballet studios offer the opportunity to interact with professionals before/during shows but ours does.

I used to dance until 18 and agree this is a problem. I was lucky in that I have always enjoyed food too much to contemplate anorexic or bulimic behavior but there were always a few girls everyone knew about. It didn't help that being very slim is very directly rewarded with better roles and more in-class encouragement from teachers. I would think modeling is similar.