What is an eating disorder?

See that girl who is super thin?  How can she be sooooo thin and tiny.  I mean what on earth does she do for food?  Ever wondered that? Here's some answers from Wikipedia.

An eating disorder is a compulsion to eat, or avoid eating, that negatively affects both one's physical and mental health.

Eating disorders are all encompassing. They affect every part of the person's life. According to the authors of Surviving an Eating Disorder, "feelings about work, school, relationships, day-to-day activities and one's experience of emotional well being are determined by what has or has not been eaten or by a number on a scale."

Anorexia nervosaand bulimia nervosaare the most common eating disorders generally recognized by medical classification schemes,with a significant diagnostic overlap between the two.

Together, they affect an estimated 5-7% of females in the United States during their lifetimes. There is a third type of eating disorder currently being investigated and defined - Binge Eating Disorder. This is a chronic condition that occurs when an individual consumes huge amounts of food during a brief period of time and feels totally out of control and unable to stop their eating. It can lead to serious health conditions such as morbid obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.^.

^{It's a serious issue - watch out for your daughters!}

 

Comments

[Darvina]

Great blog! Eating disorders are more psychological than a nutritional problem. Eating disorders aren’t centred around their food, it’s actually psychological and includes their self-esteem. So while the problem is not eating enough and therefore lacking in nutritional needs, the roots of the overall problem begins with their mental health. Any eating disorder treatment program will be a better solution to get well soon.http://www.drcohen.ca/services/eating-disorders/