A teenager was under-nourished and his body was falling apart he weight was just 4 and a half stone. Among 2007 and 2011, 167 boys aged under 18 were given urgent situation treatment at hospitals or expert units, figures from NHS trusts in England and Wales.

That is a dreadful 65 per cent boost from the previous five years, when 101 boys had been admitted with anorexia.

The amount of girls aged 17 or younger admitted with anorexia nervosa has also shot up from 1,192 between 2002 and 2006 to 1,662 between 2007 and 2011 that’s a increase of 39 percent.

“Boys nowadays are experiencing as much pressure as girls when it comes to body image. There certainly needs to be more emphasis put on education in schools to build children’s self-esteem.” A spokeswoman for the eating disorder charity Beat