Are You Aware Of These Eating Disorders?

An individual is considered healthy when there is a balance between hunger and satiety but disruption in this cycle can be caused due to eating disorders. This results in physiological consequences of malnutrition and can be cured by improving the diet.

Some studies suggest that 9% to 10% of adult women suffer from compulsive type eating disorder and 10% to 15% of men are a victim of eating disorder. Adolescents are often a victim of these disorders but that doesn't mean adults aren't a victim.

        Source - istockphoto.com (Google)

These eating disorders push people to a limit where self-harm becomes second thought to them such as overeating or not eating at all to fear calories. Some people gobble up the food and then vomit to excrete out extra calories that they took.

There are many types of feeding and eating disorders, and they all come with their defining characteristics and diagnostic criteria. Let’s have a look at them

1) Binge Eating Disorder (BED)

It is a serious eating disorder characterized by recurrent binge eating without the use of inappropriate compensatory weight control behaviors and it is pretty common.

Symptoms: 

a) Eating ginormous amounts of food rapidly and stealthily until full up to the brim despite not being hungry

b) Lack of control during episodes of binge eating

c) Feeling distressed, shame, disgust, or guilt when thinking about the binge-eating behaviour

If you notice clearly, people with binge eating disorder often have overweight or obesity. This might increase their risk of medical complications which are linked to excess weight, such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.

2) Anorexia Nervosa

People with anorexia generally consider themselves overweight, even if they’re perilously underweight. They tend to constantly monitor their weight as it leads to binging less on certain types of foods and severely restrict their calories.

Symptoms:

a) Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat

b) Persistent behavior towards interfering with weight gain despite low weight

c) Elaborated fasting days

d) Doing extensive exercise to burn the calorie intake

e) Distraught experience of one’s body weight or shape mostly, influenced by self-evaluation or persistent lack of recognizing the graveness of their low body weight

Although anorexia is the eating disorder that receives the most attention, it is the least common. You must know that it leads to the absence of menstruation in women. People suffering from anorexia nervosa have a distorted vision of their body combined with a fear of being obese.

3) Bulimia Nervosa

People diagnosed with this disorder are consumed by episodes of binge eating, they feel compelled to overeat and may go so far as to make themselves vomit. They deal with alternate dieting or eating only low calorie “safe foods” with binge eating on “forbidden” high-calorie foods.

Symptoms:

a) Eating often and in large amounts simultaneously feeling out of control while eating and gulping without chewing.

b) Frequent purging to prevent weight gain, using methods like self-induced vomiting, laxatives or diuretics, routine fasting or over-exercising.

c) Highly concerned with body weight and shape

d) Disordered eating and purging behaviours occur every once a week for 3 months

Side effects of bulimia might always include an inflamed and sore throat, swollen salivary glands, acid reflux, irritation of the gut, severe dehydration, and some hormonal disturbances. They're victims of an obsession with food, they avoid eating meals with other people and thus withdraw from friends and family due to low self-esteem.

4) Pica

It is the persistent eating of substances such as dirt, paint or other various substances which have no nutritional value. This disorder occurs in adults, children and adolescents but most recurrent in children, pregnant women, and individuals with mental disabilities.

Symptoms:

a) Nausea

b) Pain in the stomach or abdominal convulsion can indicate that there might be an intestinal blockage

c) Constipation

d) Diarrhea

e) Stomach ulcers may cause blood in the stools

They may be at a worsened risk of poisoning, infections, gut injuries, and nutritional deficiencies. Depending on the substances ingested by the person, pica may be fatal.

Well, you saw the most common eating disorders but let me tell you there are few more disorders. Recently, experts have proposed that differences in brain structure and biology might play a role in the development of eating disorders.

In general, Serotonin and dopamine levels could also serve as a reason for these disorders. Several factors are the roots of eating disorders, comprising a combination of both genetic and psychological problems within the family circle or the cultural and social environment. But the good news is that they can be treated and it starts with you!

Treatment:

Family-based treatment (FBT) is the best treatment for children and adolescents with eating disorders. Essentially, the family is an indispensable part of the treatment team. Parents usually provide meal support which allows the kid to recover in their home environment.

A registered dietitian can help you to relearn the components of a healthy diet and would also motivate you to make the necessary changes.

With proper medical care, however, those with eating disorders can resume healthy eating habits, and recuperate their emotional and psychological health.

Caring for your physical and mental health will go a long way toward helping you to cope up with an eating disorder. In addition, talking to a therapist or joining a support group and seeking support from a trusted friend or family member helps you to recover faster.

You must know that recovering from an eating disorder isn’t always easy and it takes courage, but it is possible with the right support system in place. So if you find someone suffering from an eating disorder please be their pillar of support.

Written By - Bennet Vini. R

Edited By - Chavi Goel