The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, Inc. (ANAD) is a non-profit (501 c 3) organization working in the areas of support, awareness, advocacy, referral, education, and prevention.
ANAD is the oldest organization aimed at fighting eating disorders in the United States. ANAD assists people struggling with eating disorders and also provides resources for families, schools and the eating disorder community.
In the early 1970s, Vivian Hanson Meehan, ANAD’s founder, was a nurse at a hospital in Highland Park, Illinois. When a family member was diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa, Vivian was unable to find any information or resources on eating disorders. Support was unavailable. She was told by experts, “Anorexia Nervosa is so rare that there are probably no more than 2000 cases of Anorexia Nervosa in the United States – you are wasting your time.”
Vivian decided to do something simple to see….
