Remember that eating disorders aren’t really about weight and food. They are expressing something else troubling happening in their life. — Susan Albers Psy.D.
Millions of people from around the world are affected by eating disorders, a medical condition that affects both men and women. These conditions can occur at any time during a lifespan, but the average age of onset is fourteen. Eating disorders can have a devastating effect on health and relationships. Those suffering from these disorders frequently have low self-esteem and really don’t see themselves as they appear to others. They generally suffer from poor body image, believing that they are overweight even when they are emaciated. The damage caused by these conditions can be life-threatening and long-term.
Those suffering from eating disorders generally have low self-esteem, ashamed of the condition; they tend to isolate themselves, no doubt believing that no one cares and wouldn’t know what to do https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/general/no-one-cares-about-me-what-can-i-do-to-find-support/. Eating disorders tend to be stigmatized by the population. Those with eating disorders will often deny that they have a problem. They will attempt to cover up the symptoms, so it may not be easy to recognize the problem until the eating disorder is well established.
Anorexia nervosa is a greedy illness. It takes everything it can. — Lauren Grunebaum L.C.S.W.
Anorexia Nervosa
Of all eating disorders, Anorexia Nervosa has the potential to cause the most physical damage. It is, in fact, one of the most dangerous psychiatric conditions, with four percent of sufferers dying from anorexia and up to twenty percent from associated problems.
People suffering from Anorexia Nervosa have poor body image, believing that they are overweight even when they are perilously thin. They obsess over their weight, severely limiting their food intake. They have an unrealistic view of what their body should look like. The sufferer thinks about food and body image constantly. By controlling their food intake, they control their lives.
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They starve themselves, and as they lose weight, changes in behavior, emotions, and thinking take place. Relationships with friends and family are also altered. Many people assume that males do not suffer from eating disorders, but twenty-five percent of anorexia sufferers are male.
Anorexia can have severe health implications: brain damage, organ failure, infertility, heart damage, and even death can result in severe cases.
In our weight-biased culture, when a fat person loses weight, it is almost always seen as a good thing. Even when that weight loss is caused by an eating disorder. — Alexis Conason Psy.D.
There are two types of Anorexia Nervosa: Binge/ Purge type, where the sufferer sometimes eats excessively and then purges because of feelings of guilt that result from eating. They take laxatives, induce vomiting, take diet pills and appetite suppressants, or exercise excessively.
The Restrictive Anorexic fails to eat sufficient calories to maintain the body, slowly but surely starving themselves.
As chronic diseases go, anorexia is the third most common, after asthma and Type 1 diabetes, amongst young people.
Causes of Anorexia Nervosa
The causes of anorexia are often complex and are both biological and environmental.
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Environmental factors that give rise to anorexia
Professional and career requirements. Models and athletes have careers that depend upon the media’s perfect physical appearance.
Media images. We constantly see images of beautiful people in peak condition. This can result in impossible goals of physical perfection.
Childhood trauma. Many who battle eating disorders have been subjected to childhood physical or sexual abuse.
Peer pressure
Parental attitude. Poor body image can result from the parent’s attitude to food or body image. In addition, some children develop eating disorders as a coping mechanism when they have poor relationships with their parents.
Psychological disorders
Anorexia is associated with childhood perfectionism, obsession, and anxiety.
Biological factors
Hormones
Genetics plays an important role in the development of eating disorders.
Nutritional deficiencies
It is believed that where the genetic predisposition for eating disorders exists, environmental factors can trigger the disorder.
Eating disorders are not a choice. No one chooses to lose all of their friends, because they cannot go anywhere that there will be food. — Jennifer Rollin MSW, LCSW-C
Research into the genetic connection
Understanding the genetic basis of anorexia could help therapists to better recognize the connections with environmental inputs and could also form the basis of tailored medical interventions.
The Anorexia Nervosa Genetics Initiative ANGI is the biggest study of the genetic origins of Anorexia Nervosa. It is an intercontinental study of eight thousand individuals, some with Anorexia and some without. The DNA of these individuals will be studied to determine the genetic link to anorexia.
The objective of the study is to pinpoint the genes that make an individual predisposed to the disease.
Treatment of Anorexia Nervosa
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On seeking help the physical condition of the anorexic will be assessed and all nutritional and medical interventions will take first priority. Multi-disciplinary treatment interventions are tailor made to ensure that patient has the best chance of long-term recovery. Treatment will include nutritional, psychiatric and family therapies, and may be either inpatient or outpatient.
Find help
It is crucial for those with anorexia to seek assistance. The earlier the treatment starts, the less physical damage can take place. The long-term therapeutic outcomes of early intervention are also improved.
Until recently, eating disorders were considered a condition largely restricted to adolescents and young adults. But research carried out at the University College London has found that three percent of women in their forties and fifties have newly diagnosed eating disorders. 5300 women in this age group participated in the study. In older women, eating disorders are often brought about by divorce, financial strain, empty nest, unemployment, menopause or bereavement.
Anorexia nervosa is a multi-factorial mental disorder that affects mostly women. This means that it is caused by many interrelated factors and in many instances, there is no single factor to link to disorder. Whatever is the cause, the concern of the individual is to attain an “acceptable” body figure by aggressive means up to the point of starving and killing themselves from the complications of the condition. However, to the person suffering from anorexia nervosa, there is no “acceptable” body weight. There is only disapproval and feeling of disgust every time she sees her image in the mirror.
Anorexia nervosa is a greedy illness. It takes everything it can. — Lauren Grunebaum L.C.S.W.
In our weight-biased culture, when a fat person loses weight, it is almost always seen as a good thing. Even when that weight loss is caused by an eating disorder. — Alexis Conason Psy.D.
The best and most important way to begin recovery is to educate yourself. There are tons of helpful books and articles about eating disorders that can really help you to understand what to expect. If you have a local library, be sure to take a trip and check out some books about eating disorders. There are many books about what to expect, stories of recovery, changing the way you look at yourself, and more. Here are some of the most helpful and popular books that you can read:
“Answers to Binge Eating – New Hope for Appetite Control” by Dr. James M. Greenblatt
“Body Outlaws: Rewriting the Rules of Beauty and Body Image” by Ophira Edut
“Goodbye ED, Hello Me” by Jenni Schaefer
“Life Without ED” by Jenni Schaefer
“The Eating Disorders Sourcebook: A Comprehensive Guide to the Causes, Treatments, and Prevention of Eating Disorders” by Carolyn Costin
If you suspect that you may have an eating disorder, the first course of action should be to analyze your family’s past, your current mental state, and your attitude toward food. It’s extremely rare for an eating disorder to develop without some kind of risk factor. Eating disorders often run in families, so it’s important to remember that if a family member has an eating disorder, you may be at risk of one. In that same vein, you may have some kind of mental illness that the eating disorder has sprouted from. Mental disorders also often run in families. If you’ve already been diagnosed with some kind of anxiety disorder, depression, or mood disorder and you feel as though you’re developing an unhealthy relationship with food and eating, it may be time to visit your doctor.
In our weight-biased culture, when a fat person loses weight, it is almost always seen as a good thing. Even when that weight loss is caused by an eating disorder. — Alexis Conason Psy.D.
Depression is most simply defined as feeling sad with little to no change in mood for at least weeks at a time. Common symptoms include the following:
extreme sadness
losing interest in things that one enjoyed in the past
feeling tired
change in eating and sleeping patterns
feeling worthless
In our weight-biased culture, when a fat person loses weight, it is almost always seen as a good thing. Even when that weight loss is caused by an eating disorder. — Alexis Conason Psy.D.
In our weight-biased culture, when a fat person loses weight, it is almost always seen as a good thing. Even when that weight loss is caused by an eating disorder. — Alexis Conason Psy.D.
Anorexia: Common Symptoms and Warning Signs
Anorexia, also called anorexia nervosa, most typically involves an obsession with one’s weight and calorie intake. In an effort to combat weight gain, patients with anorexia resort to starving themselves or at least eating the bare minimum to survive. Of course, this dramatic restriction of eating causes all kinds of symptoms, the most common being the following:
severe weight loss
extremely thin appearance
tiredness
dizziness
brittle hair and nails
constipation
very susceptible to the cold
irregular heartbeat
trouble getting warm
dehydration
fainting
dry skin
brittle bones
These symptoms are developed when anorexia has been present for a substantial amount of time. This means that there are some warning signs present. Typical warning signs of anorexia nervosa include:
refusal to eat
obsession with weight
obsession with appearance
skips meals
weighing food
obsessing over calories and fat content
eats a handful of foods that are extremely low-calorie
The most common physiological symptoms of eating disorders include but aren’t necessarily limited to, high/low blood pressure, slow breathing and pulse rates, dry skin or hair, and brittle nails. All of these symptoms, tooth decay, heart irregularities, and extreme dehydration (the most telltale sign of bulimia), are typical indications of bulimia. In a common doctor’s evaluation, a patient is normally given an x-ray and blood tests to ensure that there are no broken bones, blood levels are relatively normal, and the thyroid, liver, and kidneys are all working properly.
People commonly misperceive that individuals with eating disorders are “vain” or that eating disorders are all about wanting to look thin like models in the magazines. However, the reality is that eating disorders are caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. — Jennifer Rollin MSW, LCSW-C
People commonly misperceive that individuals with eating disorders are “vain” or that eating disorders are all about wanting to look thin like models in the magazines. However, the reality is that eating disorders are caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. — Jennifer Rollin MSW, LCSW-C
Awareness of eating disorders is not that prevalent compared with other mental conditions. The common notions for individuals with eating disorders are usually they just don’t have the appetite to eat, they are just too stressed, so they overeat, or they just ate something bad, so they want to eliminate that.
There is so much more about eating disorders. These disorders are serious psychological conditions that require attention from professional therapists.
