Avoiding treatment for eating disorders.

• Position: YOUR LIFE

Financial woes, family denial, and fear are factors that people with eating disorders and their loved ones may cite when avoiding treatment for their illness. According to the Eating Recovery Center, Denver, Colo., those with eating disorders are waiting longer to enter treatment, and are going in significantly sicker.

"Waiting to seek treatment for an eating disorder can be a fatal decision," warns Kenneth L. Weiner, medical director. "As an eating disorder progresses, the likelihood that it will lead to serious medical problems grows exponentially. It's important to seek help as soon as symptoms arise."

Eating disorder treatment is not the only medical area that has fallen victim to the recent economic decline; a poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation, Menlo Park, Calif., found that nearly half of Americans say someone in their family has skipped pills or postponed medical care because of the cost. Weiner indicates that an individual's fear of gaining weight or reluctance to come to terms with the underlying roots of the disease also may play a part in the decision to ward off treatment.

Here are five reasons he gives not to put off treatment:

* Eating disorders are the deadliest mental illness...