Eating Disorders : Anorexia Nervosa

To be diagnosed with eating disorder, someone must meet certain criteria. The criterion for diagnosis slightly varies depending on if you are referring to people who (A) fear gaining weight, and have significant weight loss,(B) eating a huge amount of food , then use laxative to remove the binged food, (C) the use of excessive exercise and fasting in order to remove or to reduce the amount of calories consumed, and (D) distorted body image, no matter how thin they become, they still see themselves as fat, or not thin enough. The onset of of symptoms begins usually in early adolescence with the diagnostic of disturbed Body image.

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.

What exactly is an eating disorder? There are multiple different types of eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, eating-disorder-not-otherwise-specified, and binge eating disorder. These are just some of the more common eating disorders people can suffer from. Anorexia nervosa according to National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), is “characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss.” In other words a person who suffers from anorexia nervosa refuses to eat in hopes to lose weight at an excessive pace. Bulimia nervosa is “characterized by a

There is an estimated eight million Americans that have an eating disorder, seven million of them are women and one million are men (MDH). There are three common types of eating disorders anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating. Anorexia nervous which is mostly called anorexia, is an eating disorder generalized by extremely low body weight, fear of gaining weight, and a distorted self-image of their body’s (WebMD). With anorexia nervosa people will limit the amount of food they consume, and try to control their food intake by vomiting after they eat, using laxatives, or enemas, and by exercising an excessive amount. With bulimia when the person will eat enormous amount of food then try to emesis the food up or try to exercise to get rid of the calories they just consumed.

“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.

In order to explore the eating disorder that is facing much adolescences during their lives, specifically anorexia nervosa, a search was conducted and various scholarly articles were assessed and integrated into the final paper of this class. The assignment today will review the articles selected.

Effects of anorexia are mostly seen on the outside of the victim’s body, but do not be fooled. This detrimental eating disorder affects one’s mind just as much as it would the body. What Anorexia does to the mind is that it distorts the way one views their body. Victims of anorexia become fixated on their body image and overly critical about their flaws and weight. Even being obviously underweight, Anorexics will continuously deny that they have a problem and continue with their fatal practices. One will continue to diet and take weight loss medication to get as thin as they see fit. The chemistry of the brain changes completely; your memory becomes bad, the brain’s ability to think is off, and extreme mood swings are prevalent. (Smith,

Eating disorders are defined as mental disorders that are characterized by abnormal eating habits that have a negative effect on a person’s mental or physical health. These disorders can be due to psychological or genetic factors, however the most common cause is exterior influences causing feelings of inferiority which sparks an obsessive need. Many of these disorders, such as stress eating, night eating, and binge eating, are not recognized as medically treatable conditions outside of the medical field. The most well-known and understood eating disorders are anorexia nervosa and bulimia, both of which can lead to death if not caught and treated in time.

Eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder consist of emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. Up to 24 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder in the U.S (ANAD, n.d.) bulimia nervosa as well as the other eating disorders are considered to be a female eating disorder, a disorder that only affects women which limits males to seek treatment let alone make aware to other that they suffer from bulimia nervosa. Individuals who suffer from bulimia nervosa tend to eat big amounts of food which experience a lack of control of over eating. They tend to undertake improper purging behaviors such as vomiting, laxative use, excessive exercise and/or starvation. Individuals with bulimia nervosa display their unsuitable adaptive eating patterns a minimum of two times per week for three months and are excessively sensitive to weight gain (Ray, 2004).

Anorexia Nervosa is one of several subtypes descending from feeding and eating disorders. It is a crippling life-threatening condition marked by a patient placing restriction on energy intake relative to needed energy requirements, resulting in a relentless pursuit of low body weight in the context of age, sex, development and physical health. According to American Psychiatric Publishing of diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-5) “Anorexia Nervosa, often times have an early-onset which primarily affects adolescent girls and young women, is characterized by distorted body image and excessive dieting that leads to severe weight loss with a pathological fear of becoming fat” (APA). Anorexia is a condition more common amongst younger patients that causes a disruption in the normal growth process, because they fail to achieve ideal weight and height expectancy. Psychologist are able to determine if an individual meets anorexia weight cutoff requirement by measuring how thin their patients are by calculating body mass index (BMI)

In today’s generation, many females have a fear of gaining weight especially ranked upon young women who turn to food because of long-term depression, stress, emotional issues, physiological, and even social factors. Their main concern tends to focus on the amount of weight but yet gorge on varieties of unhealthy high calorie products (silverthorne1). In consequence females start to have Anorexia Nervosa or even Bulimia Nervosa. Even though both disorders are dangerous similarity Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia have common symptoms on an individual’s health and can even lead to termination of their life.

The eating disorders ( ED ) are a group of extremely complex conditions, characterized by abnormalities in alimentary patterns, an excessive concern of body fitness, an altered perception of body image and a close correlation between all these factors and the levels of self-esteem. Nowadays, DSM IV identifies two main ED: Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. Starting from the 50’s of the previous century, the diffusion of anorexia have been notably persistent and constant through these years so much, that in an international point of view, “there are no other psychiatric diseases which have spread in such rapidity as well as propagation characterized by a serious social epidemic” (Ministero della Salute, 2010). Anorexia is a problem that nowadays

It was found in 2005 that 75-80% of female adolescents with access to treatment recover from an eating disorder, but less than half of males do. It was also found that up to 20% of those suffering from an eating disorder die

The term anorexia nervosa means lack of appetite. Anorexia is a serious eating disorder, where people starve themselves because they think they are fat. People with anorexia look into the mirror but do not see themselves to same as we may see them. They see themselves as fat or overweight but that does not mean they are overweight. Not all people with anorexia are underweight, but they may still feel as if they are fat and need to lose weight. Anorexia is not the only eating disorder there is also bulimia. When people eat and then puke. Another eating disorder is binge eating disorder. When people overeat but do not puke. Anorexia though, is caused by serous limit is someone's diet and restrictions on what they chose to eat

Eating disorders are very serious sitiuations that need to be handled with care. They are so harmful to ones body and can cause death in an indiviual i it is not handled properly. Some people label this as a mental illness and I do believe that their is something mental about these disorders. There is something in this persons mind that causes