Eating Disorders

In the United States alone, more then 10 million females and 1 million males are fighting eating disorders. An eating disorder is an obsession with food and weight that harms a person’s well being. Individuals with eating disorders are willing to go to extremes to lose weight.

Our group researched the general topic of eating disorders and more specifically, two of the most prevalent eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss. An individual with anorexia has an intense fear of weight gain and being “fat,” many exercise excessively to prevent weight gain. Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by a secretive cycle of binge eating followed by purging. Bulimia involves the consumption of large amounts of food вЂ" more than what most people would eat in one sitting вЂ" in short periods of time, then getting rid of the food through ways such as vomiting and laxative abuse.

There is a lot of important information that would be beneficial for everyone to know about eating disorders. It is important and very helpful to know the signs of an eating disorder, which include drastic weight loss, preoccupation with counting calories, the need to weigh oneself several times a day, excessive exercise, binge eating or purging, food rituals such as taking tiny bites, skipping food groups or re-arranging food on the plate, avoiding meals or only wanting to eat alone, taking laxatives or diuretics, smoking to curb appetite and persistent view of oneself as fat despite being at normal weight. Another aspect of eating disorders that is extremely important to know are the harmful effects that eating disorders cause to one’s body. These include, but are not limited to, hair loss, low blood pressure, abnormally slow heart rate, palpations, anemia, kidney stones, kidney failure, swollen joints, fractures, osteoporosis, constipation, loss of menstrual cycle in females, and growth of fine hair all over the body (lanugo).

There is no one known cause for eating disorders. Many things effect the acquisition of an eating disorder including biological factors such as genetic predisposition and chemical imbalances, psychological factors such as having a perfectionist attitude or having to have control, family factors such as a way to deal with conflict in the family, and