Teenager was so distraught that a boy she had a crush on had fallen in love with another girl slimmer than her that she starved herself to be thinner. Parents make heartbreaking decision to stop medical treatment for anorexia nervosa after daughter spent 20 days in a deep coma. — SCMP
The story of a 15-year-old girl in China who died weighing half the normal weight for her age after going on a crash diet to win the heart of a boy has caused widespread anger on mainland social media.
Xiaoling, not her real name, was 165cm tall and a native of Dongguan city in the southeastern province of Guangdong.
She had been diagnosed with anorexia nervosa and passed away weighing just 25kg after more than 20 days in a deep coma, China Newsweek reported.
In a distressing viral video posted with the story, Xiaoling is seen lying motionless in an intensive care unit hospital bed, clearly suffering from the effects of extreme weight loss.
She began her deadly weight loss regime of drinking water only on the third day of Chinese New Year in January. Her motivation was to win the affection of a boy she had a crush on but who had fallen in love with a girl who was thinner than her.
Her loss of weight concerned her parents but numerous attempts to help her failed.
On one occasion Xiaoling tried to jump out of the car when her parents tried to take her to hospital.
When they finally managed to get her admitted she carried out acts of self harm and tried to escape.
Her descent into anorexia nervosa was accelerated by her refusal to have treatment and her dire state got worse after 50 days without food in mid-March, surviving on water alone.
When she was finally admitted to a local hospital in March, Xiaoling was unconscious, severely malnourished and in respiratory failure. She was immediately transferred to Shenzhen Children’s Hospital for emergency treatment.
“She is as light as a quilt. We are not sure if she can regain consciousness,” an unnamed doctor says in the video documenting her treatment.
After she slipped into a coma, the doctor told her parents they had a stark choice to make, leave her in a comatose state or “free her” from the pain.
“Xiaoling, can you give a response to me?” her mother asks her in the video.
After careful thought, her parents decided to stop the treatment and let their daughter go.
The story has sparked public fury on mainland social media.
One person asked: “Why do so many people consider being slim a standard requirement for girls?”
“We have to learn how to love ourselves. Everyone is beautiful,” said another.
It is not the first time such a case has caught the public’s attention in China.
In June last year, a 30-year-old woman with an eating disorder in northern China whose weight dropped to just 25kg was rushed to hospital with multiple organ failure in a case which shocked doctors.
In 2018, the story of a woman approaching the age of 50 in central China who was suffering from anorexia and weighed less than 30kg went viral. – South China Morning Post
