The Causes of Eating Disorders
There is no single cause for eating disorders. A number of factors, including cultural and family pressures, chemical imbalances, and emotional and personality disorders collaborate to produce both anorexia and bulimia, although each disorder is determined by different combinations of these influences. Genetics may also play a small role.
Between 40% to 96% of all eating-disordered patients experience depression and anxiety disorders; depression is also common in families of patients with eating disorders. Bulimic patients are more likely to report having emotional disorders and dysfunctional families than are anorexic-restrictor patients. It is not clear, however, whether emotional disorders are causes, results, or both, of eating disorders.
Some experts claim that depression does not play a causal role, particularly in anorexia, because eating disorders are rarely cured when antidepressant medication alone is the treatment. The severity of the eating disorder is also not correlated with the severity of any existing depression. In addition, depression often improves after anorexic patients begin to gain weight. On the other hand, a number of studies have detected in some people with severe anorexia and bulimia abnormal levels of certain neurotransmitters (chemical messengers in the brain), particularly serotonin, that are associated with depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder. These neurotransmitters remain unstable even in recovering patients. Studies are finding that low blood levels of the amino acid tryptophan, a component in food that is essential to the production of serotonin, can produce depression and may also contribute to bulimia. During the dieting stage between binge...
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... bingeing and purging by slowing down, thereby increasing the risk of weight gain from even normal calorie intake. The process of vomiting and use of laxatives may stimulate the production of natural opioids -- narcotics in the brain that cause an addiction to the bulimic cycle.
Biologic Causes for the Perpetuation of Anorexia Nervosa. Hunger often intensifies depression, which can further reduce self-esteem and confidence, increasing the need for renewed vigilance over weight control, thus perpetuating the cycle. On the other hand, some experts believe that certain anorectic people inherit an unusual amount of natural narcotics that are released in the brain under conditions of starvation and may promote an addiction to the starved state. Starvation can also give a false sense of fullness due to reduced stomach activity, making it increasingly easy not to eat.
According to article call “Porter’s Five Forces Model/Strategy Framework” it stated, “The Five Forces Model was developed by Michael E. Porter to help companies assess the nature of an industry’s competitiveness and develop corporate strategies accordingly. “ (Martin, 2014). According to article call “Porter’s Five Forces Model/Strategy Framework” it also stated “The framework allows a business to identify and analyze the important forces that determine the profitability of an industry.” (Martin, 2014). According to article call “Porter’s Five Forces: Analyzing the Competition”. It stated that “
Threat of new entrants is relatively high. Companies forming alliances are potential rivals. Even if earlier such company was not considered to be a threat, after merging with some research and development company or forming alliance with another pharmaceutical company it would become a rival to Eli Lilly. The threat is however weakened by significant research and development costs necessary to successfully enter the business. Eli Lilly’s focus on a relatively narrow market of sedatives and antidepressants weakens the threat of new entrants, but other products that form lesser part of company’s sales such as insulin and others are exposed to high threat of new entrants. The need of obtaining certificates and licenses also weakens the threat of new entrants. Discussed above leads to the conclusion that threat of new entrants is medium.
Anorexia is an obsessive desire to control ones bodily appearance. It often starts with the refusal to obtain a healthy body weight. “This disorder is associated with under nutrition of varying severity with resulting secondary endocrine and metabolic changes and disruptions of bodily functions” (Kontic et al. 2013). An Anorexic person has a distorted view of themselves which can lead to devastating measures of self-starvation due to an immense fear of weight gain. In the same way, an individual suffering with Bulimia has a fear of weight gain, but goes about their technique in a different manner. Bulimia is an eating disorder characterized by binge eating or, consuming a large amount of food in a short time followed by guilt. This guilt is the leading factor to the purging stage where the individual will rid themselves of the physical and emotional discomfort. The ridding stage can invo...
Although monopolies appear damaging at times, there are arguments that they are an advantage to society. Monopolies in the pharmaceutical industry drive companies to pursue research and development (R&D) efforts to gain new patents. According to a 1992 study, among the 24 US. Industry groups, pharmaceuticals dedicated 16.6% of their amounts to basic research, while all other industries averaged at 5.3% (Sherer 1307). This fact validates the incentive pharmaceutical companies have to get a patent and acquire more power. Pfizer encourages R&D because of the incentives and a want to obtain patents to receive more profit. Pfizer has to promote itself to be successful, creating a good brand image that consumers will trust. If the company can advertise successfully, more consumers will purc...
Polyphonic HMI, a subdivision of Barcelona-based Grupo AIA, is charged with applying the parent company’s artificial intelligence and natural science ideas and products to the music industry. Grupo’s major strengths lie in these areas and have led to the development of several successful and innovative tools used to solve all types of business problems across different industry sectors. Polyphonic, Grupo’s first entertainment-based subsector, is releasing Hit Song Science (hereafter HSS), a software used to predict the potential success of songs by mapping their mathematical properties and matching those to previous hits. However, Polyphonic is facing a series of problems. Two stand out: one, they have no identifiable target market. Two, Polyphonic has no defined marketing approach on which to launch their original product offering. This report will address, analyze and make recommendations for solving these challenges.
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).
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).
10. Collis, David, and Troy Smith. "Strategy in the Twenty-First Century Pharmaceutical Industry:Merck&Co. and Pfizer Inc." Harvard Business School, 2007: 8-12.
About fifteen percent of Americans suffer from some type of eating disorder. Media and Bullying are two causes of eating disorders. Different types include Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. Although it is clear that eating disorders can sometimes improve appearance for some people, these disorders are also life threatening and have negative effects such as depression and fatigue.
Porter's five forces analysis is an industry analysis model developed by Michael E. Porter as a tool for developing business strategies to become or stay competitive in an industry or marketplace as per (Braze, 2013).
Of the three eating disorders, anorexia gets the most attention and has the highest mortality rate of six percent out of any mental illness. According to the International Journal of Eating Disorders, half of the deaths caused by anorexia are suicide. Anorexia is when an individual feels that his or her body is distorted. Anorexia is also when an individual starves himself or herself because of the fear of being overweight (Elkins 44). If an individual suffers from anorexia they will loose anywhere from fifteen to sixty percent of their body weight by starving his or herself. Some of the symptoms of anorexia are heart problems, anemia, and fertility problems (“Eating Disorders”). Another horrible eating disorder is bulimia, which is when a person over eats, feels guilty, and then purges, take...
In the studies of bulimia nervosa there is a continuing debate concerning the underlying cause of the disease - whether it is physiological or psychological. Studies have found convincing results for both theories. Numerous links have been found between eating regulation and neurotransmitters. However, there is no clear evidence that neurotransmitter dysfunction is the underlying cause of bulimia nervosa. Of the neurotransmitters that have been tested, serotonin has had one of the largest roles in the regulation of food intake among patients with bulimia. Progress has also come through treating bulimia as a psychological disorder. Treatment under this theory often involves psychotherapy and the use of antidepressants. However, it is widely accepted that the path to the best results involves the combination of both physiological and psychological methods of treatment.
...n the companies will have to decrease the price otherwise the product will not be sold at higher prices and the revenue would not be as large as companies would like to.
A substitute performs the same or a similar function as a product by a different mean. They belong to a completely different industry. High threat of substitutes impacts industry profitability negatively.
The Porter five forces model (see Appendix 1) as an external analysis tool was established by Michael E. Porter and firstly announced in his book “Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors” in 1980 . The main idea of the Porter five forces concept is that the attractiveness of a market depends on the characteristic of the five competitive forces that have an impact on a company (see Appendix 2).