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The Dangers of Bulimia Essay

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The Dangers of Bulimia Janie races down the hallway of her home and runs into the bathroom. She slams and locks the door behind her, turning up the radio full blast to assure that nobody will hear. Janie quickly squeezes her eyes shut, preparing her for the discomfort that follows. On impulse and routine, she quickly jams a finger down her throat and relieves herself of all the food she has recently binged on. After she is all done, she stares in the mirror, and bursts into tears. “I am so fat and worthless,” she thinks to herself even though she is only 130 pounds. Janie sits on the floor and pulls her knees tight to her chest, “I can’t eat for a whole week because I am a stupid, fat, ugly, pig!” However those were the …show more content…

According to Leigh Cohn, “bulimia is an addiction that takes over a persons thoughts and self esteem. The longer the person is bulimic, the harder it is to quit” (19). There is a growing trend toward bulimia. Even though more women are affected than men, the most common age of bulimics range from 13-40 years of age. These people are commonly known to be high achievers or sports players. One source from The Royal College of Psychiatrists states, “high achievers are affected because they see bulimia as the missing link to the perfectism puzzle” (Internet). It’s also common for anorexics to turn bulimic because anorexics starve themselves. When they finally do eat, they feel out of control and purge. In fact, 60% of all anorexics eventually turn bulimic. There are several forms of bulimia. The most frequent form is binge and purge. Another form of bulimia is when a person binges really badly, and then fasts for days. This form actually makes the person gain weight because it will slow down their metabolism , and when they start eating again they will actually gain weight. In a book entitled When Food’s a Foe, the author suggests that another form of bulimia occurs where a person is obsessed with over exercising is extremely popular for athletes (32). There are many methods of purging, but the most common methods are: self induced vomiting, over use of laxatives or diuretics, enemas, abuse of diet

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