Anorexia plagues 2 percent of female high school seniors and 10 percent are at risk of developing the dangerous eating disorder, according to a health ministry survey made available Thursday.
The survey was the first of its kind in Japan. It was conducted in fiscal 2002 for the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry by Hisako Watanabe, an expert in pediatric psychiatry and a lecturer at Keio University's school of medicine.
The group that compiled the report underscored the importance of detecting the eating disorder early during school medical checkups and to start treatment immediately, because anorexia in adolescent girls can lead to infertility and other health problems -- as well as death, it said.