The family of a young woman who killed herself after a long battle with anorexia says the illness "starved her brain and destroyed her hopes".
Alana Goldsmith was 23 when she left the hospital where she was receiving care on the afternoon of July 22, 2011 and took her own life at Summer Hill in Sydney's inner-west.
The Goldsmith family requested an inquest following her death, to review patient care and explore the issues impacting eating disorder sufferers, carers and practitioners.
On Tuesday, Magistrate Mark Douglass told Glebe Coroner's Court that it had been a "complex and harrowing matter with many difficulties".
He made the finding that Alana had taken her own life while suffering from anorexia nervosa.
He will not publish his reasons until later this month.
Speaking outside the court, Simone Goldsmith said her older sister started wrestling with the illness when she was 15 but managed to hide it from her friends and family for many years.
"Alana was a fun-loving, vivacious and intelligent young woman until anorexia nervosa starved her brain and destroyed her hopes and dreams," she told reporters.
"This silent killer is a highly complex mental illness ... We hope that the findings handed down today bring about meaningful discussions ... that result in more resources and better care."
Butterfly Foundation CEO Christine Morgan said people with eating disorders need specialised treatment and early intervention.
"This is an illness that kills," she said. "It has the highest fatality rate of any mental illness and we cannot ignore that.
"We need to have effective treatment.
"We need significantly more resources ... we need more care that is in the community and psychologist and psychiatrists."
* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.
