Argumentative Essay On Eating Disorder

In the United States, 20 million women and 10 million men suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life (“Get The Facts on Eating Disorders,” NEDA). This is in the United States alone. Imagine how many people are affected by eating disorders in the world. Even Though there is a plethora of people with eating disorders, many people don’t speak out and if they ever do it may be too late. Eating disorders can kill you and affect other factors of your health so it is important to find help. Although eating disorders are crucial, scientists, school, etc are trying to help people suffering and prevent others from having an eating disorder.

Around 10-15% of all Americans suffer from an eating disorder. “More than 7 million women suffer from an eating disorder whereas only one million men suffer from an eating disorder” (Mirasol). In modern society, we are surrounded by media and images. Both men and women struggle to meet the expectations set forth in magazines, websites, and on television. The pressure to imitate the ideal body can lead many down unhealthy paths. Teens today face a lot more challenges which leads them to illnesses like Anorexia, Bulimia, and Binge eating. Although there are a lot of similarities in this disease, the differences can also affect people differently, which means different treatments are required.

The movie relates that percentage of women with anorexia nervosa has been increasing consistently by 5%, making girls ages 18-24 the most vulnerable to this illness. The women interviewed in the film all came from different backgrounds but displayed similar characteristics related to their eating disorders. All of them said they their eating habits were “inspired” by some sort of media, whether it was a movie star, a television show, a model, or advertisements. One girls in the group therapy session stated that she watched a film about bulimia and was actually inspired to engage in this binging and purging behavior because of it. She along with others interviewed in the movie, reported that she did not think it was a big deal because it looked like you could eat just about anything with no consequences. This relates to the idea of using binging and purging as a tool of power, that is discussed by researchers later in the film. Women with eating disorders are often women that feel powerless, so they feel like their eating habits are the only thing

Nowadays, when people emphasis more and more on healthy lifestyles, both exercise and food intake have become a big part of the consideration. With the goals of being fit and losing weight, some people eat irregularly or do not eat at all. As a result, eating disorders seem more often on news and reports. However, some people still view it as a joke. With the increasing number of people diagnosed with eating disorders, people should raise awareness on the effects of eating disorders and treat them seriously.

Did you know that eating disorders have some of the most shocking- not to mention frightening, statistics compared to all other mental disorders? Not only do eating disorders have the highest mortality rate compared to any other mental illness, but over 30 million people of all ages, genders, and races suffer from eating disorders. Although all ages can suffer from eating disorders it is most common among teenagers and women. Many books have been written, displaying the intense mental and obviously physical struggles of this sickness. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson has become very popular over the years as well as Perfect written by Natasha Friend. Eating disorders have also continuously been glamorized in movies and songs. In Civil War Sickness directed by Isa Gueye, she tells about her recovery as well as her struggles

Throughout high school, I had a few different friends that were diagnosed with an eating disorder, and I was also told by my doctor that he believed I was anorexic because I was very thin and exercised too much. I was involved in many different sports in high school and had a very high metabolism, but I did not consume enough calories in a day. This movie was eye opening because I got to see some of the same behaviors that I exhibited in high school. For example, the woman who would constantly exercise, but would still eat pretty normally, I felt like I related to her. She felt as though she did not have a problem, but after her doctor spoke to her she was able to seek help. A lot of people who have an eating disorder do not think that they have a problem or that what they are doing is wrong.

As illustrated in this novel, eating disorders are about a lot more than just food. The novel

“Worldwide, at least 2.8 million people die each year as a result of being overweight or obese and an estimated 35.8 million (2.3%) of global DALYs are caused by overweight or obesity” (Global Health Observatory data, 2017). With the help of others, adults and teens in the world will strive in their goals to achieve weight loss. What are the causes and history of obesity? What routines, diet, treatment are available for the overweight individual? Are there support groups for obesity?

In today's society, there is much attention being given to the subject of eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia; unfortunately it is because these disorders seem to be becoming more and more common. The question that remains is whether eating disorders such as these are simply personal problems of the individuals, or if they have become a social problem that needs to be addressed more aggressively. Having grown up in this society, I see this issue as a definite social problem. To say that these increasingly common eating disorders are personal problems, implies that the causes of them are personal as well, which I believe is not the case. A social problem is something that goes against society's goals and values; it would seem

Hollywood was transpired into a world of fame over art; what once was the outlet for artistic inspiration is now the centerpiece for intoxicating wealth. Over the years there have been a few instances where that is not the case, however. Sadly, a film now has to be a hit in order to get any recognition or profit, which is done so with well known actors. Moreover, the films that are able to produce a box office gain are not the ones that essential cover the topics needed to be discussed. “To The Bone” happens to be one of the few, if not the only film that respectfully covers the issues of eating disorders without any hostility aimed towards those suffering.

Before watching the film I knew a fair amount about eating disorders from things I was exposed to on TV but nothing too in depth. I knew that this was a disease that mainly affected young women but wrongly assumed that it only affected young, upper class, white females. I also knew that this disease is something that could be overcome but was unsure of the process and the long term effects. Despite my prior knowledge I still had a lot of questions regarding the topic. Although it is common knowledge that many young girl’s desires for “ideal” body type is influenced by the media’s overexposure and glamorization of extremely thin models, actresses, and celebrities but are there any other factors that may impact this? Could this be a nature vs nurture issue? If we are all exposed to the same media coverage of this unrealistic physical expectation of women why do some girls develop eating disorders and others do not?

A famous social theorist named Simone De Beauvoir once said, “The dinner table is a battlefield where warriors defeat the eating disorder one bite at a time.” People with eating disorders should not be stereotyped. Everyday people suffer from this illness, and they are stereotyped by society. Each and every single person suffering with this illness is different. Patients under these circumstances should not have to wake up everyday and be judged because of an illness. To ensure all patients with eating disorders are not overlooked, stereotypes should be eliminated. Patients are not only young girls who want to be thin. Patients are far more diverse: not all of them are female, not all are young, and the desire to lose weight is not the basic cause.

While the types of eating disorders differ in symptoms, at the heart of both is an intense fear of becoming overweight and fat. They are a common and very dangerous disorder in which they hurt the person’s body and mental process. Proper attention and treatment is mandatory to get the person healthy again. Treatment like therapy and Cognitive Behavioral therapy is the most effective, however with each situation, treatment should vary. Center Stage depicts very well how influences of others and oneself can lead to an eating disorder. The ability to relate this movie to real life circumstances is uncanny, and it depicts perfectly how pressures of life and family can result in unhealthy situations.

She also described finally being accepted and feeling “cool” (PBS Nova, 2015). It is exactly this positive reinforcement that adds fuel to the fire in eating disorders. This constant societal pressure and influence makes treatment that much more difficult, as it works against anything that is taught in eating disorder psycho-education. As a woman with Bulimia Nervosa mentions in Dying to Be Thin (PBS Nova, 2015), it in was in her research of eating disorder treatment that she found “techniques that worked” and which she adopted into her disordered behaviors toward food.

Eating disorders appear to be something that is more common in this country and ignored. Media portrays people do be a certain body frame and it is talked about who has the right body shape and who does not. This makes it extremely difficult for people, especially women. Media and other people put a huge pressure on women and young girls to have a certain body image and shape to be “beautiful” or more attractive especially to the other gender. This can be a lot of the times when eating disorders come into play. From the video on the dancers, they talked a lot about how it was ideal to be extremely skinny. A woman was so skinny that her bones were popping out and other dancers were jealous and envious that she had that body and they did not. Others want to know how she got to be that way when it was truly unhealthy. One thing that people and society needs to pay attention to is these stigmas and pressures them put on other people. People can go to great lengths and put themselves at risk to live up to this unrealistic idea.