Eating Disorder Profiles

Eating disorders are common, relatively chronic and potentially life-threatening psychiatric disorders conditions primarily affecting young women. Eating disorders are also associated with psychological suffering, acute and long-term health impairments, a high rate of suicide attempts as well as an increased risk of mortality early detection and treatment improve the prognosis, but the presentation of eating disorders is often cryptic. This paper will compare the constructs of two assessment tools and examine the key test measurement constructs of reliability and validity for each assessment tool use in eating disorders. The Eating Disorder Inventory-3 (EDI-3) and the “Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q)” acre commonly used assessments

Topic: What is causing young adults and teens to develop eating disorders and how can we help them?

With Anorexia Nervosa, there is a strong fear of weight gain and a preoccupation with body image. Those diagnosed may show a resistance in maintaining body weight or denial of their illness. Additionally, anorexics may deny their hunger, have eating rituals such as excessive chewing and arranging food on a plate, and seek privacy when they are eating. For women, they go through immediate body changes from abnormal to no menstruation periods and develop lanugo all over their bodies. Characteristics of an anorexic individual also consist of extreme exercise patterns, loosely worn clothing, and maintain very private lives. Socially, to avoid criticism or concern from others, they may distant themselves from friends and activities they once enjoyed. Instead, their primary concerns revolve around weight loss, calorie intake, and dieting. In regards to health, many will have an abnormal slow heart rate and low blood pressure, some can develop osteoporosis, severe dehydration which can result in kidney failure, and overall feel weak (Robbins, 27-29). It has been reported that Anorexia Nervosa has one of the highest death rates in any mental health condition in America (www.NationalEatingDisorders.org).

It is important to distinguish between normal eating and the behaviors that typify eating disorders or disordered eating. Even among those attempting to lose weight or maintain a lower percentage of body fat, normal eating is “flexible and not obsessive.” (Dunford and Doyle 455). Although athletes have a stricter nutrition plan versus the general population, their eating should actively support training through moderate levels of restraint yet should still allow for healthy eating patterns such as eating when hungry, not feeling the need to punish oneself after an indulgence through excessive caloric restriction or exercise, and the ability to participate in social events. Dunford and Doyle term this as “discipline, not…obsession” (456). While the eating disorders of anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and binge eating all have clear-cut clinical definitions, disordered eating is a more nebulous term that can define a wider array of

With that being said, certain sports put more emphasize on a player’s weight and performance than others. For instance, gymnastics, dancers, wrestlers, divers and long distance runners feature more strain than sports such as basketball, skiing or volleyball. Gymnasts and dancers are highly at risk for developing eating disorders for multiple reasons. The main reason is that their success relies

Numerous studies have shown that athletes are more prone to developing eating disorders than nonathletes, as well as female athletes being more at risk than their male counterparts. Disordered eating is seen in athletes of all sports. (Johnson, 1994). The prevalence of eating disorders in the female athletic population ranges from anywhere between one and forty percent, depending on the athletes questioned, and the methodology used (Sundgot-Borgen, 1994). Rosen and Hough (1988) found that 32 percent of athletes practiced at least one pathogenic weight-control technique(141). A study done by Sundgot-Borgen, in 1994, controlled for the possibility that self-report data could be unreliable in numerous ways, including not informing coaches of their intentions, and assuring 100 percent confidentiality to the athletes who participated. It found that the risk for eating disorders is increased if an athlete's dieting is unsupervised, if there is an early start to sport-specific training, and/or extreme exercise (Sundgot-Borgen, 418).

Eating disorders are a very serious psychological condition that affects your mind so that you are more focused on your food and weight than you are on everything else. The most known and most commonly diagnosed eating disorders are anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder; however, these are not the only eating disorders. Eating disorders cause psychical and psychological problems, which at their worst can even become life threating. Statistics show that more women are affected by eating disorders, but men none the less can still be affected. “Age (most common from teens to early twenties), Family history (hereditary), emotional disorders (people with anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder are at a great chance), transitions (moving, heading to college, or anything that can bring emotional distress), and sports (ballerinas, gymnasts, runners, and wrestlers are at a higher risk) also can play a role in who is being affected by an eating disorder” (Eating Disorders).

Diagnosing potential Anorexia nervosa is not always easy, and Alicia’s case, based on information given and her representation, is not clear cut. Researchers argue that the diagnosis has to be done carefully and potential ambiguities have to be resolved (Baer & Blais, 2010). For example, some researchers have argued that one criterion, such as a fear of being fat, can decrease significantly when the person actually loses some weight (Surgenor & Maguire, 2013). For reasons like this, selecting the primary question, namely whether or not the patient has Anorexia

This article explored the topic of identifying symptoms in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN). The Eating Disorder Inventory led a study, conducted by D. Garner, that studied females with AN to classify behavior exclusive to the psychological disorder. The researchers recognized the problem of trying to identify any restrictive manners or detrimental behaviors that could identify a person with AN. The purpose of the research was to find tell-tale symptoms or psychological indicators of AN in patients.

Several of the early studies which attempted to guess the number of eating disorders among athletes produced many mixed results. Some studies labeled college athletes as high risk, whereas others have found no support for such a label. The guesses widely varied going from 1% in anorexia and up to 30% in bulimia. In 1993, Sundgot-Borden and Larsen compared eating disorder related things across sport categories with female college students and a female medical-based population. Their results showed that athletes involved in endurance and ball game sports did not differ on eating disorder related things, and were not at risk for eating disorder related things. Unfortunately, these early studies were not properly managed, for there existed a variety of methodological limits such as sampling procedure problems as well as small sample sizes which cannot be representative of a whole population. A more difficult 1994 study by Sundgot-Borgen, used a self-report combined with an interview, which questioned 522 elite female athletes. His results indicated that

Anorexia nervosa, usually shortened to anorexia, is defined as an emotional disorder characterized by an obsessive desire to lose weight by refusing to eat (Mayo Clinic). Some of the factors of anorexia are a refusal to maintain a healthy body weight, an intense fear of gaining weight, and a distorted body image (Segal). People with anorexia place a high value on controlling their weight and shape, using extreme efforts that tend to significantly interfere with activities in their lives. Thoughts about dieting, food, and one’s body may take up most of the day, leaving little time for friends, family, and other activities they used to enjoy. Life turns into always trying to lose weight. The people living with anorexia have distorted minds. They have a phobia of gaining weight and will go to extreme circumstances to achieve their ideal body image. Anorexia is not just about the food, however. Usually anorexia is an unhealthy way to manage their underlying emotional problems. When one has anorexia, they often equate thinness to self-worth and happiness. Anorexia nervosa affects millions of people worldwide, but the prevalence of them in dancers, particularly ballet dancers, is said to be nearly 20 times higher than in non-dancers (Shoker). Nevertheless, anorexia can damage health and even threaten lives.

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that consists of self-regulated food restriction in which the person strives for thinness and also involves distortion of the way the person sees his or her own body. An anorexic person weighs less than 85% of their ideal body weight. The prevalence of eating disorders is between .5-1% of women aged 15-40 and about 1/20 of this number occurs in men. Anorexia affects all aspects of an affected person's life including emotional health, physical health, and relationships with others (Shekter-Wolfson et al 5-6). A study completed in 1996 showed that anorexics also tend to possess traits that are obsessive in nature and carry heavy emotional

Unhealthy behaviors, which are not typically self-reported, may be difficult to distinguish from normal diet behaviors that facilitate performance. These disorders are relatively common in athletes, with estimates as high as 62 percent for females and 33 percent for males. Recent literature also suggests that prevalence of these disorders is not necessarily dependent on participation in weight-sensitive sports, such as gymnastics and wrestling (Bonci, 2015). Student athletes are more at risk because of prevalence, genetics, sociocultural factors, and sport related factors. Eating disorders in sport occur more frequently in females than males. Epidemiological and molecular genetics studies suggest a strong genetic predisposition to develop

Hudson, Hirripi, Pope and Kessler’s (2007) research indicates that the average onset of anorexia nervosa is 19 years old, but can develop as young as 14 years old, and women are more likely to develop anorexia nervosa than men. Some studies indicate that anorexia affects whites more than Hispanics, African Americans and Asians; however it crosses cultures and socially diverse populations (APA, 2013). According to the DSM 5, Anorexia nervosa predominantly occurs in developed, high-income countries such as in the United States, as well as in many European countries, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. Individuals who present with weight concerns that develop eating and feeding disorders varies substantially across cultural contexts. One study indicated that that “the ‘spread’ of Western values regarding slimness (fat phobia) is primarily responsible for the development of anorexia nervosa in non-Western societies” (Rieger et al., 2001). Rieger et al (2001) also looked at the medical records of Asian women and found the absence of fat phobia; the rationale for dietary restriction was commonly related to other external factors. The WHO (2004) also reports that female athletes, ballet students, fashion models and culinary students are at risk of developing anorexia nervosa; unhealthy dieting and society’s

The altered eating and exercise patterns of those with eating disorders can seriously damage physical and emotional health. The ANAB (n.d.) contends activities associated with eating disorders place one in medical danger. Strenuous over-exercising is often seen in those with eating disorders even though they may be quite ill. The body of an eating disorder sufferer frequently has electrolyte imbalances and gastrointestinal problems. The