How much do you know about eating disorders and are you suffering from one? Issues For Girls & Boys examines the horrifying facts and effects of anorexia and bulimia in our image-conscious society.
Every day, we get bombarded with loads of images of the 'ideal' body shape and size. Fashion magazines, TV commercials and the movies. Let's face it, lots of us will go the extra mile to obtain that 10/10 figure. We plunge into 'miracle' diets and try 'fat-dissolving capsules' with enthusiasm, but do we know what exactly are we doing to our bodies and how easy it is to fall into the deadly trap of eating disorders?
Starve Till Death
There are two main kinds of eating disorders. The first is anorexia nervosa, in which a person is unable to maintain the healthy weight for his or her age and height. It is self-imposed starvation resulting from a distorted body image. This fatal disease usually strikes women more than men, and is noticeable through the significant weight loss of the victims, accompanied by excessive dieting. Anorexics have impossibly high standards for themselves in the things they do (not just in dieting), and are perfectionists in every sense of the word. They constantly feel the need to prove their competence. Ironically, despite their competence, anorexics suffer from self-esteem problems and often refused to acknowledge that they are harming their bodies.
what are the signs and symptoms of anorexia nervosa?
- Distorted body image (thinks he or she is fat even when the weighing scale indicates otherwise)
- great fear of gaining weight
- Long-term absence of menstruation (for women)
- Excessive physical exercise
- Constant fatigue
- Long-term constipation
What are the signs and symptoms of bulimia?
- Great fear of gaining weight
- Problems with body image
- Infrequent or absence of menstruation (for women)
- Fasting followed by eating binges
- Excessive physical exercise
- Self-induced purging
- Unusual eating habits and rituals
- Obsessive monitoring of weight
Binge and Purge
The second kind of eating disorder is known as bulimia. A bulimic regularly binge eats, then tries to rid the calories. He or she does this by slef-induced vomiting, takin laxatives, fasting or doing fast or rigorous exercise. Bulimia sufferers experience a great deal of control oer the eating process, and can swing between bouts of stuffing themselves with food and fasting.
Advice for Sufferers of Eating Disorders
The most important thing for an individual who suffers from eating disorders is to face up bravely to the fact that he or she suffers from eating disorders. With the right kind of treatment and counselling, eating disorders can be cured. Accept yourself and do not conform to external pressures from peers to the media which promote a certain body shape or size. Do not be ashamed to seek help; nobody will look down on you. Remember that you are what you eat, and if you do not eat anything, you will end up a nothing.
What are the medical consequences if anorexics do not seek help?
- Shrunken organs
- Bone mineral loss, which can lead to osteoporosis
- Extremely low body temperature
- Slowed-down metabolism and reflexes
- Irregular heartbeat which can lead to cardiac arrest
- Death
What are the medical consequencs if bulimics do not seek help?
- Dehydration
- Bowel, liver and kidney damage
- Electrolyte imbalance, which leads to irregular heartbeat and in some cases, cardiac arrest
What warning signs indicate tendencies towards anorexia and bulimia?
- Having a strong and unnatural fear of weighing over seven stone
- Having lost a lot of weight but still feeling that you are enormous and lumpy
- Limiting the amount of food you eat and obsessing over the calories in each dish
- Secretly exercising as much as possible even when you are tired or unwell
- Making yourself throw up or taking laxatives
- Skipping meals and then lying that you have already eaten
- Feeling isolated, unhappy and irritable yet unable to confide in anyone
- Not menstruating after a period of strict dieting
Labels: anorexia nervosa, anorexics, binge and purge, bulimia, bulimic, eating disorders, Overcoming Eaing Disorders, self-imposed starvation
