Essay on Linking Eating Disorders With Genetics

Bulimia nervosa, also called bulimia is a possible life threating eating disorder. A person that suffers from bulimia may secretly binge their food. They may eat large amount of food and then purge their food to get rid of the additional calories that they’ve digested. Bulimia is categorized in two ways, purging bulimia and non-purging bulimia. Purging bulimia is when a person regularly self-induces vomiting after eating. Non-purging bulimia is when an individual may use other methods to try to prevent weight gain, such as fasting, extreme dieting, or overly exercising.

“During an average binge, you may consume from 3,000 to 5,000 calories in one short hour. After it ends, panic sets in and you turn to drastic measures to “undo” the binge, such as taking ex-lax, inducing vomiting, or going for a ten-mile run. And all the while, you feel increasingly out of control” (Smith, Melinda. Bulimia). The final eating disorder discussed in this paper is binge eating. Binge eating disorder is known as overeating or a period of uncontrollable eating. Binge eating is becoming more and more common here in america because of the large quantities of food sold daily. Although, binge eaters do not purge after eating, they still feel shame or guilt after eating like a bulimic (Anorexia, Nervosa).

The biological approach suggests that AN is due a physical cause, suggesting it could be due to something within the body or brain; such as hypothalamus dysfunction or an imbalance of neurotransmitters.

Bulimia Nervosa refers to when an individual over-eats excessively and then takes action to purge the body of the intake. There are five criteria for Bulimia Nervosa in the DSM-IV, which include: recurring episodes of binge eating, recurring actions of purging, the patterns must continue at least twice a week for three months or more, a huge emphasis on body weight in self-evaluation, and the actions must occur apart

Bulimia Nervosa and Binge-eating disorder both involve episodes of binge eating, which is eating an abnormally large amount of food, in comparison to what most individuals would eat in a similar amount of time. Binging episodes are often associated with a sense of lack of control and can continue until the individual is painfully full, remorseful of behaviors, and are commonly done while the person is alone. Individuals with Bulimia or binge-eating disorder will both experience these episodes of binging; however, Bulimia Nervosa involves inappropriate compensatory behaviors such as purging, self-medication, or excessive exercise in response to binges. Someone suffering from binge-eating disorder would not engage in these compensatory behaviors.

According to the DSM-5, eating disorders are characterized by a persistent disturbance of eating–related behavior that results in non-normative eating patterns which leads to impaired physical and psychosocial functioning, (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Bulimia Nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of binge eating with inappropriate compensatory behaviors to prevent weight gain. Binge eating is described as eating an amount of food definitely larger than normal with a sense of lack of control. Compensatory behaviors include misuse of laxatives, self-induced vomiting, diuretics, fasting and excessive exercise, (Comer, 2014) . Another key feature is

Binge Eating Disorder is known as eating too much or consuming major amounts of food and not being able to stop or feeling out of control. Binge eating is comforting for a brief moment, but then the feeling of guilt and self-loathing flood in. Generally, it takes a combination of things to develop a binge eating disorder. It usually begins in late adolescence or early adulthood, and it often occurs more in women than in men. People who have binge eating disorder usually have trouble handling their emotions and often feel out of control in their everyday life. Binge eating disorders often stem in people who are overweight, but it can occur in people of normal weight also. Although many people know that binge eating disorder is caused by psychological issues, they often do not know that it is also caused by behavioral and environmental issues as well.

As a toddler, my mother prevented me from leaving the dinner table until finished my entire meal. "Eat your supper! Just three more bites of vegetables! “Make a happy plate!” A “happy plate” meant eating all the food provided. If the plate was happy, then so was my mother. Years have passed, and I am aware how according to society, I shouldn't be proud if I clear my plate. My peers, male or female, pride themselves on skipping meals and consider it an accomplishment to feel dizzy, hear their stomach growl, or see their ribs begin to show.

Binge refers to constantly repeating an act. Speilman et al. (2014) describe bulimics as participating in this kind of behavior when they “binge eat” and then purge their stomach or binge exercise to make up for the perceived “over” consumption of food. Those who suffer from anorexia

Anorexia Nervosa refers to abnormal lack of appetite or lack of desire to consume food even when there is a physiological need for food. It involves self denial of appetite and eating even if they feel hungry and became underweight. Bulimia Nervosa is also a nervous disorder when person is afraid to gain weight and eats large amounts of food. Such a person indulges in episodes of rapid eating followed by vomiting, strict dieting, taking diuretics or laxatives. Binge Eating is episodes of uncontrolled eating large quantity of foods. There is desire to eat and the person eats rapidly.

According to Webster the definition of an “Eating Disorder” is “Any of several psychological disorders (as anorexia nervosa or bulimia) characterized by serious disturbances of eating behavior.” Anorexia Nervosa is one of the three main eating disorders. It has the highest mortality rate of all mental illnesses(ANAD). Anorexia Nervosa is defined as a loss of appetite for food or refusing food in order to lose weight. Out of all of the psychiatric disorders Anorexia Nervosa is the only one that has a physical symptom as one of the diagnostic criteria(Schellenberg). Bulimia Nervosa is the second of the three main eating disorders. 1% of women develop bulimia(Eating). Bulimia is known as an individual consuming a vast amount of food and then disposing of it through self-induced vomiting, the use of diuretics, or excessive exercising. The third main eating disorder is Binge Eating Disorder. Individuals who develop this disorder feel out of control while they are eating and tend to eat very large amounts. Binge eating is known

Another eating disorder that is common among adolescents is bulimia nervosa. According to Stöppler (2008), bulimia nervosa is characterized by episodes of secretive excessive eating, also known as bingeing, followed by methods of weight control such as self-induced vomiting (purging), abuse of laxatives and diuretics, or excessive exercise. Bulimia is also a psychological disorder, and the cycle of overeating and purging can quickly become and obsession similar to an addiction to drugs or other substances (Stöppler, 2008). Binge eating is usually not triggered by intense hunger from the individual, but more or so as a response to depression, stress, or other feelings related to body weight, shape, or food (Stöppler, 2008). Stöppler states that oftentimes the individual will feel a loss of control during the binge eating and the purging becomes a way to regain that loss of control (2008). According to Stöppler, a person diagnosed as bulimic must have all of that disorder's specific symptoms (2008). For a person to be classified as bulimic he or she must have all of the following symptoms: recurrent episodes of binge eating in which a minimum average of two binge-eating episodes a week for at least three months, a feeling of lack of control over eating during the binges, persistent concern of being overweight, and a regular use of one or more of the following to prevent weight gain (self induced vomiting, use of

     Eating disorders are devastating and harmful behavioral patterns that occur within people for numerous reasons. The three types of eating disorders I will be discussing include the three most common of the disorders: anorexia, bulimia, and compulsive over eating (known as binge eating). Though the disorders take physical damage on the body, they are not in fact physical illnesses. You cannot "catch" and eating disorder. Rather, they are mental issues that develop more frequently within females but do affect the male population somewhat as well.

An eating disorder is a way of using food to work out emotional problems. These illnesses develop because of emotional and/or psychological problems. Eating disorders are the way some people deal with stress. In today’s society, teenagers are pressured into thinking that bring thin is the same thing as being happy. Chemical balances in the brain that may also result in depression, obsessive compulsive disorders, and bi-polar disorders may also cause some eating disorders. Other causes may be emotional events, illnesses, marital or family problems, manic depression, or ending a relationship. Over eight million Americans suffer from eating disorders. Over 80% of girls under age thirteen admit to dieting, one of the main

“Bulimia Nervosa is characterized by massive food binges followed by self-induced vomiting or use of diuretics and laxatives to avoid weight gain.” (Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia)