Addiction is having a devotion to something to a point where it becomes a habit and even obsessive. Anorexia and bulimia are forms of addiction (www.addictionscience.net). Eating disorders are patterns of persistent eating or dieting behavior. They can be caused by significant emotional, physical, and relational distress (www.addictionscience.net). Some eating disorders are Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge eating. Anorexia is the relentless pursuit of thinness. Bulimia is the uncontrollable urge to eat large amounts of food in a short amount of time (Exploring Science 6th Edition Myers, David G). The media plays a big part in this it creates an artificial image that people are supposed to look picture perfect, such as supermodels and athletes.
People with anorexia are unable to maintain there average body weight and height for their age (www.aedweb.org). Most are afraid of gaining weight and usually see themselves as being fat, even thought they might be underweight (www.aedweb.org). People with anorexia often deal with depression and withdrawal. They begin strange behavior such as dividing there food into a “good/safe” category, and a “bad/dangerous” category (www.calpsy.net/org).
Individuals with Bulimia usually overeat during meals. After eating, they usually feel guilty and punish themselves by forcing themselves to vomit, or by using laxatives, enemas, or by over exercising (Exploring Science 6th Edition Myers, David G). They also deal with depression and loneliness often. People with Bulimia have difficulty talking about their inner feelings. They also have anxiety depression, and anger (Exploring Science 6th Edition Myers, David G). They also might have problems with impulse control, shoplifting, and may be very sexually adventurous. They may also take in the habit to abuse drugs and alcohol depending on severity (www.anred.com).
People who binge eats are usually overweight. They diet to make themselves hungry and then binge eat to make up for the hunger. However, also eat for emotional reasons because they feel it substitutes for their depression (www.addictionscience.net).
Some of the warning signs of eating disorders are with food behavior (Exploring Science 6th Edition Myers, David G). They will usually skip meals or only eat a small portion. They will not eat in front of other people and they mix strange food combinations, they will also have an excuse to never eat. Suddenly they will stop eating their favorite foods and only eat a few “safe” foods. Often find themselves wearing baggy clothes to cover up their “non-perfect” appearance (www.
There are many different characteristics associated with a person who has been diagnosed with anorexia. Anorectics have a distorted image of their bodies. In other words, they see themselves as fat even when they are emaciated. They also have an obsessive preoccupation with food and thinness. Anorectics suffer from depression, mood disturbance, chronic feelings of low self-esteem, and insomnia or other sleeping disorders. Another common symptom is amenorrhea. This is a loss of menses or not achieving menarche if the disorder begins before puberty. Anorectics also impose extreme dieting or exercise practices on themselves.
Symptoms of bulimia can be quite invisible because the bulimic can maintain normal weight. Occasionally, patterns of behavior may signal a problem: Do they restrict certain food? Do they eat in a ritualistic way? Are they overly concerned with diet? Do they weigh themselves every day? Do large quantities of food disappear from the refrigerator? Do they visit the bathroom soon after meals or frequently? (Negri).
Anorexia is a psychiatric disorder that is most common in young women. Those who suffer with anorexia have a fear of gaining weight and have an inaccurate portrayal of their own bodies. They see themselves as being fat, even though they are already thin to begin with. They are willing to go to extreme measures to lose weight, but the only outcome is a severely unhealthy body weight. To achieve the weight they want they will either starve themselves or do a tremendous amount of exercise.
Bulimia is one of the major eating disorders among teens. Bulimia is when someone binges− eats a lot of food in a short period of time− and then purges, ...
...t, as the disorder is often a result in lacking in coping skills. Symptoms of binge eating include: eating more rapidly than usual, eating until uncomfortably full, eating large amounts when not physically hungry, eating alone because of embarrassment of the quantities of food consumed, and not being able to purge after consuming large quantities of food (Dobie 1). Because it is not always recognized as an eating disorder, compulsive over-eating may have the most adverse effects on health.
Let’s start by defining what eating disorders are and who has them. Eating disorders are problems that are psychological in nature that result in inadequate or excessive food intake (Martini, Nath, Bartholomew, 2012). Eating disorders are a group of very serious conditions that leaves the affected so completely preoccupied with food and weight that they can focus on hardly anything else (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014). Examples of the main types of eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder. The majority of people suffering from eating disorders are female; however males can also be affected. Males are the exception to the rule when it comes to binge-eating disorder; it appears almost as many males as females are affected (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014). Eating disorders are usually diagnosed in adolescence (Newman & Newman 2012). Eating disorder detection has a broad age range, however most are between ages eleven and twenty (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014).
Bulimia nervosa is a serious psychiatric illness. People who suffer from bulimia binge eat regularly and try compensating for their behavior by over exercising, purging and fasting; according to the National Library of Medicine a significant number of people with bulimia also have anorexia (Nordqvist, 2009). There are many warning signs and symptoms that come along with bulimia such as: binge eating, purging, over exercising, constant change in bodyweight, disappearing after eating to the restroom, depression, and damaged teeth (Nordqvist, 2009). Not only does bulimia affect ones physical appearance but it also affects a persons state of health because there are many consequences that come along with this disorder such as: sto...
It is normal to overeat from time to time, but when it comes to binge eating, the urge is persistent and seemingly uncontrollable and is usually accompanied by feelings of shame and guilt. Binge eating disorder, just like other mental disorders, is strongly linked to depression, low self-esteem, anxiety and stress. Persistent overeating also leads to obesity and other serious health conditions.
Most of you probably already know what anorexia is, however in case you don't anorexia is basically a disease involving self-starvation. Anorexia victims have a very low "ideal" weight. It might begin as a normal diet carried to extremes, reducing their food intake to a bare minimum. Rules are made of how much food they can eat in one day and how much exercise is required after eating certain amounts of food. With anorexia, there is a strong almost overwhelming fear of putting on weight and they are preoccupied with the way that their bodies look. Anorexia sometimes involves use of laxatives, diet pills, or self-induced vomiting to lose or to keep weight off (http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/anorexianervosa.htm). Anorexics may show symptoms such as extreme weight loss for no medical reason. Also, many deny their hunger, chew excessively, choosing low calorie foods and exercising excessively (http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health).
Nutritional counseling with the help of a registered dietitian is essential in all eating disorder treatments. Binge eating treatments focus on meeting nutritional needs by ensuring the correct vitamins and minerals are included in the diet, for example. The dietician can help adjust the foods consumed to meet changing health needs. Binge eating may be caused by certain biological factors such as a malfunctioning hypothalamus, low serotonin levels and genetic mutation. There are several medications on the market that may help with binge eating, and these should be prescribed by a doctor.
Bulimia nervosa is a slightly less serious version of anorexia, but can lead to some of the same horrible results. Bulimia involves an intense concern about weight (which is generally inaccurate) combined with frequent cycles of binge eating followed by purging, through self-induced vomiting, unwarranted use of laxatives, or excessive exercising. Most bulimics are of normal body weight, but they are preoccupied with their weight, feel extreme shame about their abnormal behavior, and often experience significant depression. The occurrence of bulimia has increased in many Western countries over the past few decades. Numbers are difficult to establish due to the shame of reporting incidences to health care providers (Bee and Boyd, 2001).
Bulimia is marked by significant cycles in eating habits. Bulimics will often starve themselves (calorie/food/fat intake restriction -- sometimes with the help of diet pills or supplements) for extended periods of time prior to a massive binge, during which they consume abnormal amounts of food in a short period of time. These binges are followed by purging, which generally is constituted by self-induced vomiting. Other methods of purging the body include the use of diuretics, laxatives, and excessive exercising. Bulimics are generally within what is considered to be a "normal" weight range, but see themselves as being overly fat, or suffer from an intense fear of gaining weight. They often do realize that they have a problem, but by that point the cycle has become an obsession. Bulimics usually weigh themselves frequently, even several times daily.
Anorexia may not be noticed in early stages. The Anorexic usually chooses to wear layered and baggy clothes to hide the “ugly fat body” .An Anorexic may have ritualistic eating patterns such as cutting food into little tiny pieces and weighing themselves. These can be found in people who are on a healthy diet, but in Anorexics these behaviors are extremely exaggerated. Other warnings are deliberate self-starvation with weight loss, fear of gaining weight, refusal to eat, denial of hunger, constant exercising, sensitivity to cold, absent or irregular periods, loss of scalp perception of being fat when the person is really to this. Some other associated features are depressed mood, somatic sexual dysfunction, and ...
It is normal to overeat from time to time, but when it comes to binge eating, the urge is persistent and seemingly uncontrollable, and is usually accompanied by feelings of shame and guilt. Binge eating disorder, just like other mental disorders, is strongly linked to depression, low self-esteem, anxiety and stress. Persistent overeating leads to obesity and other serious health conditions.
Eating disorders are a serious health problem. Personal Counseling & Resources says that eating disorders "are characterized by a focus on body shape, weight, fat, food, and perfectionism and by feelings of powerlessness and low self-esteem." Three of the most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating or compulsive eating disorder. According to Anorexia Nervosa and Related Eating Disorders, a person with anorexia "refuses to maintain normal body weight for age and height" and "weighs 85 percent or less than what is what is expected for age and height." A person diagnosed with bulimia has several ways of getting rid of the calories such as binge eating, vomiting, laxative misuse, exercising, or fasting. The person might have a normal weight for their age and height unless anorexia is present. The signs of a compulsive eater include eating meals frequently, rapidly, and secretly. This person might also snack and nibble all day long. The compulsive eater tends to have a history of diet failures and may be depressed or obese (Anred.com).