Exactly What Is An Eating Disorder?
Heather Colman
Eating disorders are some of the most destructive illnesses
today. Although a commonly used term, the meaning is often a
source of confusion for many people. Basically, eating
disorders happen to people whose diet patterns have gone awry
somewhere along the way and ultimately lead to eating habits
that are damaging and dangerous.
Even though these disorders have occurred in many as stand
alone ailments, they are often accompanied by feelings of
rejection and extreme stress.
Many more women than men have eating disorders and it is a
cause for alarm in the field of medicine. It often starts with
girls eating less to maintain their figures or to look
attractive. In doing so, they are not taking in enough of the
necessary nutrients their bodies need. As a result of which
they don’t get adequate nutrients in their body. The organs in
the body are affected and it often leads to a permanent
infirmity or even death.
Doctors have come across many different types of eating
disorders. Two of the best known are Anorexia Nervosa and
Bulimia Nervosa. These may occur together or separately.
Sometimes people eat too much (which leads to obesity) and
sometimes people eat too little (which leads to anorexia) –
both are exceedingly harmful.
Bulimia is eating of too much of food and then throwing it all
up to remain thin. Orthorexia is the mania of eating the
correct food. Some people are afraid, at times irrationally so,
to eat certain things.
An aberration from the normal course of things, these atypical
forms of behavior are disturbing, to say the least as it,
disrupts good eating habits, affecting your health in a
negative way.
What causes these disorders is the question. There has been
much speculation on it. When someone is overly conscious of how
he or she looks or how fat or thin he or she is it may very well
result in an eating disorder like these. Both excessive love of
food and excessive narcissism are often responsible.
The results of an eating disorder are deadly and it is
important that a patient is treated with utmost care because
the disorder, more often than not, has a psychological
explanation. It is not only related to the amount of food one
consumes but also why one does it. It is important to uncover
the real reasons in order to set the patient on the road to
recovery.
Eating disorders can create an emotional toll too. People with
this disease are often found to be withdrawn and depressed.
Although eating disorders are very dangerous, don’t lose hope.
Talk to your doctor about what you're feeling. That's the first
step on the road to recovery.
Disclaimer: The information presented here should not be
interpreted as or substituted for medical advice. Please talk
to your doctor to learn more about diagnosis and treatment
options for eating disorders.
About The Author: Copyright © 2006, Heather Colman. Find more
eating disorder resources at:
http://www.eating-disorder-nucleus.info
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