Associate Professor,
Department of Physiology and Biophysics
School of Medicine
Georgetown University
Washington
Disorderly Conduct
I am very disappointed in the irresponsibility of "No, That's Sick" [Sept. 14], your article on pro-eating-disorder Web sites. Perhaps it was meant as a warning to parents or doctors about the existence of these sites. Instead, you advertised specific sites, with names, screen shots and quotes. I can guarantee that every Web site mentioned in the article is enjoying a surge in membership today.
Why not balance things out by mentioned recovery-oriented Web sites that include online support? The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD) site has bulletin boards as well as weekly support groups nationwide. They can be contacted at www.anad.org or 847-831-3438. (ANAD also happens to be the organization that persuaded America Online to stop hosting pro-eating-disorder Web sites.)
Other online support groups include www.paysonroad.org and www.something-fishy.org. Something Fishy has members all over the world and very strict guidelines that prevent anyone from posting tips and weight-loss goals.
Millie Plotkin
Silver Spring
