Eating Disorders: Anorexia Nervosa And

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).

According to the Mayo Clinic (2016), eating disorders are “conditions related to persistent eating behaviors that negatively impact your health, your emotions, and your ability to function in important areas of life.” One such eating disorder is anorexia nervosa. Not to be confused with anorexia, which is simply a general loss of appetite that can be attributed to many medical ailments, anorexia nervosa is a serious eating disorder and mental illness (Nordqvist, 2015). Anorexia nervosa is estimated to affect about .9% of women and .3% of men in their lifetime (“Eating Disorder Statistics & Research,” n.d.). In general, the disorder is commonly characterized by a distorted body image or self-concept, critically low weight (with respect to the patient’s height and age), and an irrational fear of becoming fat or an intense desire to be thin. There are two subtypes to this eating disorder: restrictive and binge/purge. In the restrictive type, the individual limits caloric intake and may compulsively over-exercise. In the binge/purge type, the individual consumes a considerable amount of food in a short period of time (binging) and then deliberately vomits (purging), takes laxatives, or fasts intensely in order to compensate for the food eaten (“General Information: Anorexia Nervosa,” n.d.). In either case, anorexia nervosa is undoubtedly a dangerous and alarming illness.

“Up to 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder” (Wade, Keski- Rahkonen, & Hudson, 1995). There are many factors which contribute to the development of eating disorders including “biology, emotional health, and societal expectation, and other issues” (“Diseases and Conditions Bulimia nervosa”). One of the most prominent eating disorders in America and around the globe has been around since the Middle Ages: “Bulimia is first reliably described among the some of the wealthy in the Middle Ages who would vomit during meals so they could consume more” (“A History of Eating Disorders”). Today bulimia is more prevalent and is predicted to affect around “4% of women in the United States” (“Eating Disorder Statistics and Research”). In 1979, Gerald Russell published a description of bulimia nervosa. It was the first description of bulimia ever published. Only a year later in 1980 bulimia appeared for the first time in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-III.

An eating disorder is an obsessive collection of interrelated behaviors directed towards persistent eating behaviors that negatively impact one’s health, emotions, and ability to function in important areas of life. These compulsive practices and attitudes about food, weight and body shape, manifest into deep psychological fears and an incessant need for control. Some common features of eating disorders include an irrational fear of fat, dissatisfaction with one 's body often coupled with a distorted perception of body shape, unhealthy weight management and extreme food intake. This disordered eating behavior is usually an effort to solve a variety of emotional difficulties about which the individual feels out of control. Males and females of all social and economic classes, races and intelligence levels can develop an eating disorder (Perfect). There are currently three main types of eating disorder, anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder. Each one as dangerous as the next, but yet heavily overlooked and/or misunderstood in society today (Perfect); A review of nearly fifty years of research confirms that anorexia nervosa has the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric disorder (Arcelus, Mitchell, Wales, & Nielsen, 2011).

Eating disorders take the lives of millions of teenagers and adults each year, recently becoming the highest mortality rate of any mental illness – but why? Choosing not to eat appears to be a problem with an obvious solution; how could so many Americans be suffering from something that could easily be avoided? The answer is simple — eating disorders are not weight-loss plans gone wrong; they are serious illnesses that pose great health risks. Simply skipping meals does not begin to describe the different aspects of this disease. Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and binge eating are only a few of the many types of eating disorders that effect millions of individuals each year. In most cases, the victims of these illnesses have extremely low self-confidence and view themselves as overweight, regardless of their actual size. Researchers and scientists have gathered different statistics on the causes of abnormal eating habits. While there is no obvious or direct motive, these dietary issues can be the result of

Eating disorders are a disease that can impact an individual’s health adversely by causing their emotions and capability to function in the significant areas of their life. There are two most common eating disorders and they are: anorexia nervosa, and bulimia nervosa. These disorders often begin to formulate during the teenage years of an individual’s life and can carry on through their adult years. Research states that “According to the DSM-5 (APA, 2013), eating disorders are characterized by a persistent disturbance in eating behavior” (Butcher et al., 2013, p.294). All of these disorders influences a person’s nutrition and can serious affect their internal organs.

Although eating disorders have been known since the early 70s, they have become such a major health issue in today’s generation. There are three different types of eating disorders, Anorexia nervosa which is the act of self-starvation, Bulimia Nervosa which is a binge and purge process where one would eat an abnormal amount of food in one sitting the throw it back up or using laxatives to rid the body of food. Lastly there is Binge eating which is the hardest to detect because those who binge eat still look decently healthy they usually workout a lot, but when they are alone they consume large amounts of food. This disease can be found in men and women of all ages.

Eating disorders are characterized by a high preoccupation with weight and an intense dissatisfaction with one’s body image (Institute of Psychiatry, 2015). Some of the most common Eating Disorders (EDs) include Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia, and Binge Eating Disorder, however it is important to note that not everyone fits neatly into any of these categories and could display symptoms and behaviors interchangeably. People who suffer from Anorexia Nervosa can be characterized as having very low body weight and being involved in various weight loss activities including being highly food-restrictive and possibly over-exercising (Mascolo et al., 2012). Anorexia also has the highest mortality rate among all the mental illnesses, which includes

The disease causes one’s bones to thin. This is a risk because the bones become very weak and strained, which can cause fractures among other things. ("Osteoporosis Center: Symptoms, Treatments, Causes, Prevention, and Diet and Exercise Recommendations."WebMD.) Another physical symptom of anorexia is kidney stones. Kidney stones are small crystallized growths in the kidneys that need to be urinated out of one’s body and can be extremely painful. Anorexia also causes kidney failure, and various other kidney related problems. (Smith, Melinda, M.A., and Jeanne Segal, Ph.D., "Anorexia Nervosa." : Signs, Symptoms, Causes, And Treatment.) Since Anorexics take in food at a much slower rate than an average human being, essential vitamins and nutrients that are needed to allow the body to function, are not being provided. This causes decreased levels of potassium, magnesium, sodium, and various other important bodily fluids. (Smith, Melinda, M.A., and Jeanne Segal, Ph.D., "Anorexia Nervosa." : Signs, Symptoms, Causes, And Treatment.) Probably one of the most important organs in the digestive system is the intestines. The intestines are highly affected by anorexia, and this results in constipation and bloating. Bloating is when one’s stomach expands till it’s not the normal size. It’s usually very noticeable, especially in extremely thin people. Bloating could

AN (Anorexia Nervosa) is the most visible eating disorder, is a serious psychiatric illness characterized by an inability to maintain a normal healthy body weight or, in individuals who are still growing, despite increasing weight loss and frank emancipation, individuals with AN strive for additional weight loss, see themselves as fat even when they are severely underweight, and often engaged in unhealthy weight loss behaviors (e.g. purging, dieting, excessive exercise, and fasting). (Bulk, Trace, Kleiman and Mazzeo, 2014). AN not only has harmful physical side effects but has psychological impacts as well. According to Serpell, Treasure, Teasdale and Sullivan (1998), one of the most interesting features of anorexia nervosa which sets it apart from many other conditions is highly valued in nature of anorexic symptoms.

Anorexia nervosa is a disorder defined by the DSM 5 as a disorder characterized by the client displaying:1. Restricted food intake (energy) proportional to sex, age and developmental trajectory that leads to weight loss. 2. Processing fear of becoming overweight in spite of being underweight. 3. Dysfunctional way of experiencing one’s body weight or shape. Perceived unfavorable view of one’s body or shape (self image), and or lack of seriousness concern or denial of the seriousness of low body weight, (APA, 2013).

Most people experience concerns about their weight or body shape at one time or another; however, an eating disorder is a complex psychological disorder which modifies a person's eating habits and does not represent normal issues with food (Becker, Grinspoon, Klibanski, & Herzog, 1999). Typically these disorders involve eating extremely small amounts of food, no food at all, or overeating severely. An eating disorder may begin as a desire for weight loss or physical attractiveness but somehow in some people this desire gets out of control. A person who develops an eating disorder may have started by eating smaller or larger amounts of food, but then the urge to eat more or eat less became uncontrollable at some point. Marked distress or over concern about one's weight or body shape also often typifies an eating disorder (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 2011). Most eating disorders develop during the teens or during early adulthood; however, these disorders can develop between childhood up through later adulthood (Sadock & Sadock, 2007). Each year millions of people are affected by varying types of eating disorders, many of whom go untreated. In certain cases these disorders can become life-threatening. The major eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge-eating (compulsive eating), and pica. These disorders affect people from different age groups, social economic statuses (SES), adults, and children (American Psychiatric

There are three common eating disorders; one of the eating disorders is anorexia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is commonly described as someone that is starving their body so they can either be or retain a “skinny” body. What they don’t realize is while they may have a thin body they are not giving their body the nutrients it needs and the result could be an “upset in the normal functions of hormones. For girls, this means the body is unable to produce enough of the female hormone estrogen because it does not have enough fat. This will cause an absence of menstrual cycles, called amenorrhea. For boys, anorexia causes a decrease in the production of the male hormone testosterone, which results in a loss of sexual interest.”

Anyone can have an eating disorder. Eating disorders can affect all walks of lives, women, men and even children, no longer is it the stereotypical girl that is affected. The person next to you that seems to have everything together, may be fighting for perfection and may be living with an eating disorder. The more knowledge society has, the more we can help those who battle this disease.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manuel of Mental Disorders 5th edition defines anorexia nervosa as an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss; it is a serious and potentially life-threatening disorder. According to the DSM 5, the typical diagnostic symptoms of anorexia nervosa are: dramatic weight loss leading to significant low body weight for the individuals age, sex, and health; preoccupation with weight; restriction of food, calories and fat; constant dieting; feeling “fat” or overweight despite weight loss and fear about gaining weight or being “fat.” Many individuals with anorexia nervosa deny feeling hungry and often avoid eating meals with others, resulting in withdrawal from usual friends and activities