Eating Disorders Are A Grave Health Problem

People will do anything they can to change how they look in order to differ the feelings they have towards themselves. This is when eating disorders will develop. The first eating disorder is Anorexia. Anorexia is an obsessive fear of gaining weight, refusal to maintain weight, and an unrealistic perception of body image. People dealing with

Characteristics of anorexia are dieting despite being thin and having an obsession with caloric intake as well as fat grams. An anorexic person often pretends to eat or will lie about their intake of meals because of their belief of being overweight. With all of the food restrictions many problems occur in the body and outside of the body. Some of these risks include the drastic change in brain chemistry that makes it difficult for them to think correctly, decrease in memory, fainting, or they may become sad, moody, irritable, or depressed. Other changes would include, hair may become thin and brittle, skin is dry and easily bruises, they get cold easily, and nails often get brittle. However those are not the most dangerous risks. If one is anorexic,

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).

In the book “Boys Get Anorexia Too : Coping with Male Eating Disorders in the Family,” author Jenny Langley briefly describes about anorexia nervosa, and the short-term and long-term effects of it. Anorexia is a disease involving intentional starvation, an obsession with food and weight related issues, and extreme weight loss. Langley notes that people with anorexia will deprive themselves of vital nutrients through severely restricting food intake. Despite this excessive weight loss, the person will continue to feel overweight. They deny the fact that they are at a dangerously low body weight and fear being fat. Thus, the body is forced to slow down all of its processes to conserve energy, or resulting in serious medical consequences. Langley

Eating disorders affect millions of men and women every day. Bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are three main types of eating disorders that can have detrimental consequences on the human body. These eating disorders not only deteriorate one’s body, but also eradicate the mind. “Inherent to anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are a plethora of medical complications which correlate with the severity of weight loss or the frequency and mode of purging” (Mehler, 2015).

Being obsessed with weight, people with anorexia nervosa tend to weigh themselves repeatedly, portion food and eat very small quantities are certain foods – no fats, no carbs, no sugars (Pinel, 2011). Just like with drugs, some people get better after one bout of anorexia nervosa, while some relapse and some, unfortunately, lose the battle as their health declines.

Women in the American society become so obsessed with the idea of being thin and looking like the magazine models that they will go to extremes in order to achieve their goal. In other words, the obsession can sometimes lead them right into an eating disorder. However, solutions to these illnesses do exist.

When watching the video, I realized that anorexics don’t want to eat. They don’t feel hungry; they don’t think that they are destroying themselves. When they look at themselves, they see themselves as fat and overweight. To try and fit the image of what they think they should look like becomes an obsession. This eventually leads the large percentages of weight loss. Most anorexics, it seems, ideal body weight was 15 to 20 percent below their recommended body weight (according to their age and height).

Eating disorders may not seem like it’s that big of a deal. In America, we hear about a lot about people who contract illnesses such as cancer, but eating disorders isn’t talked about much. Over thirty million people suffer from these mental illnesses, such as anorexia or bulimia. Even though these disorders have the highest life span of any mental illness, they can lead to death due to organ failure, heart failure, starvation, or even go as far as committing suicide. Things such as peer pressure, sports, body image, and low-self esteem can drive teenagers towards eating disorders.

When did a healthy body stop being beautiful? Approximately thirty million Americans have suffered from an eating disorder, yet most people do not understand the solemnity of them. (11) Eating disorders bring forth many harmful effects and even some destructive long term effects that very few people put into consideration. Eating disorders are mentally, emotionally, and physically deteriorating. There are many different reasons that a person might develop an eating disorder, and the attempt to recover from these disorders are exasperating. Eating disorders are not something that should be taken lightly. (8)

In order to main a low body weight, they engage in restrictive eating habits. This is known as the restrictive subtype of anorexia nervosa. These individuals follow low calorie diets, eating only “safe” foods that they feel comfortable with, and even fast to compensate for meals. Another way that individuals with the restrictive subtype of anorexia try to maintain a low body weight is through excessive exercise. Individuals affected by the binge-purge subtype of anorexia engage in binge eating and purging behaviors, which involves self-induced vomiting in order to compensate for overeating. These abnormal patterns of eating can lead to devastating physical effects because they are not receiving the adequate nutrition needed to sustain their body. They are severely underweight and their body weight is less than 85% of that expected for their age and height. This leads to numerous physical symptoms such as amenorrhea, growing fine hair all over the body in order to maintain body temperature, loss of bone density, slow heart rate, and premature death (Hobbs & Johnson, 1996; Fairburn, 2008; Barbarich-Marsteller, 2012).

In US today, over 30 million men, women, and children suffer from an eating disorder. Research shows that 42% of first- to third-grade girls want to be thinner and 81% of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat. In fact, most kids with eating disorders began their disordered eating between the ages of 11 and 13. (Eating Dis.3) The most common eating disorders are; Anorexia, Binge eating, and Bulimia. Why do people resort to something so life threatening? Many people are turning towards eating disorders because they don’t accept who they are. Eating disorders are a mental illness that can have dangerous effects on the human body and several people are involved in this bad habit.

Eating disorders are complex disorders, which affect physical and mental health, productivity, and relationships. In the United States, 20 million females and 10 million males are suffering from eating disorders sometimes in their life such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa; binge eating disorders (Wade et al., 2011). Eating disorders are more common in teenager and college girls as they are more concerned about their body weight. Literature has shown that these concerns go through the life but more common in young age group (Smolak, 2011).

Eating disorders are mental illnesses that involve an obsession with food, extremely unhealthy eating behaviors and a distorted body image. They are complicated, serious disorders. The group that eating disorders affects the most are typically girls through the ages of sixteen and twenty years old. Although teenage eating disorders are typically believed to be caused by depression or genetic factors, social media has worsened the problem by the huge increase in peer pressure girls endure due to the widespread use of sites such as Twitter and Instagram.

In-patients with anorexia, starvation can damage vital organs such as the heart and brain. To protect itself, the body shifts into " slow gear ": monthly menstrual periods stop, breathing, pulse and, blood pressure rates drop, and thyroid function slows. Nails and hair become brittle, the skin dries, yellows, and becomes covered with soft hair called lanugo. Excessive thirst and frequent urination may occur. Dehydration contributes to constipation, and reduced body fat leads to lowered body temperature and inability to with stand cold. Mild anemia, swollen joints, reduced muscles mass, and light headedness also commonly occur in anorexia. If the disorder becomes severe, patients may lose calcium from their bones, making them brittle and prone to breakage. Scientists from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have also found that patients suffer from other psychiatric illnesses. They may suffer from anxiety, personality or substance abuse disorders, and many are at a risk for suicide. Obsessive compulsive disorder, an illness characterized by repetitive thoughts and behaviors, can also accompany anorexia.