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Eating Disorders On the Rise During Times of Stress and Self Doubt

poshadornment | Sep 17, 2009 | Views: 182 |

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Eating disorders are defined as significant changes in eating behavior that negatively impact how a person’s mind and body functions. With dangerous life consequences, eating disorders can be described in several ways; by eating too much (binging), not eating enough (starvation), or taking extreme actions in order to lose or maintain weight. Often, people with eating disorders have distorted feelings about food and its role in bodily function as well as being self-critical of their body shapes, their overall appearance and their role in interpersonal relationships.

Young adults and teenager girls comprise the group most prone to developing eating disorders, but eating disorders can begin as early as childhood or as late as adulthood. Although women are more likely than men to have eating disorders, there has been regular documentation of men diagnosed with the problem.

Types of Eating Disorders

Anorexia:
People suffering from anorexia have distorted images of their bodies often believing and seeing themselves as “fat” despite actually being underweight. Eating disorders such as anorexia are based in the mind and are seen in people who often feel they have no control in their lives or the decisions they are allowed to make on their own behalf. A form of self-imposed starvation, anorexia nervosa can result in serious health complications including death due to lack of food and proper nutrition.
Bulimia:
Bulimia, defined as eating like a bull. Excessive eating of large quantities followed by purging, where the person then forces vomiting or the use of laxatives or other extreme methods to rid themselves of the excess calories consumed. Purging bulimics are at risk of a variety of health related issues ranging from destroying tooth enamel and esophageal lining from repeated exposure to stomach acids, to rupture of the esophagus, cancer of the lining of the esophagus and death.
Binge Eating Disorder or Compulsive Overeating:
Compulsive overeating is known for its reoccurring pattern of excessive or binge eating where the sufferer quickly eats large quantities of food in a short period of time. Binge eaters put themselves at risk of morbid obesity which has many life threatening aspects attached to the disease including heart disease, breathing problems, sleep apnea and a wealth of other problems as well as death.

Causes of Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are rooted in a complex combination of socio-cultural, psychological, and interpersonal factors. All of the eating disorders are considered diseases and not merely people who over eat occasionally or desire to lose a few pounds. People with eating disorders use food and the control of their food to deal with overwhelming and uncontrollable emotional problems and life situations. Eating disorders contribute to an imbalance in a person’s brain chemicals, influencing hunger, appetite, and digestion creating discord in the workings of the individual’s organs producing inappropriate amounts of insulin, liver and pancreatic enzymes and other delicately balanced hormones in the body.

General issues that influence the development of eating disorders:

Socio-cultural influences:

Cultures that celebrate being thin and having a perfect body

Very specific definitions of beauty that recognize a narrow range of body style parameters

Strongly valuing people on the basis of physical appearance, rather than inner qualities and strengths

Psychological influences:

Having a low self-esteem or a negative self image

Feeling inadequate or feeling not in control of one’s life

Experiencing depression, anxiety, loneliness, or anger

Overwhelming stress

Deep seated beliefs about one’s self worth

Interpersonal influences:

Trouble sharing or expressing feelings to others

Stressful family and/or personal relationships

Being teased due to size or weight

Eating disorders treatment:

Family and friends are usually the first to notice when a loved one has a problem that may end up being diagnosed as an eating disorder. Various behaviors as well as extreme weight loss or weight gain are often the first signs which trigger an initial investigation into eating disorder treatment.

When involved with a person with a potential eating disorder, it is best to remain calm and non-judgmental while simultaneously seeking information from health professionals about eating disorder treatment and gathering resources to learn about the various options available.

As with almost any long term, chronic health problem, the faster and earlier eating disorder treatment is begun, the more positive the prognosis for a complete recovery. Early recognition makes it possible to address underlying issues before a person becomes too encumbered with life-threatening behavior and irreversible damage to the body.

There are various approaches for choosing eating disorders treatment, and it is imperative to find the one that best suits the person suffering with the disorder. While no one option works for everyone, eating disorder treatment support services often involve some combination of individual therapy or psychotherapy, a treatment facility or medical management, eating disorder support groups, group therapy and eating disorder services such as nutritional counseling and education.

In the event that an eating disorder has reached life-threatening proportions, inpatient hospitalization, intensive outpatient care, and/or residential care with an eating disorders specialty unit is necessary. In some instances, psychiatric medication with medical supervision can be prescribed as an adjunct to supervised home care.

If someone you know is suffering from a suspected eating disorder, get help. There are numerous treatment centers and 12 step programs in nearly every city where educated specialists can guide and suggest treatment methods and facilities. Helping sufferers of an eating disorder to confront their problem and over come anxiety and fears surrounding it is the first step. This article is meant to be an overview and for educational purposes. It is not meant to replace medical treatment.