THE TRUTH ABOUT EATING DISORDERS
CONTENTS NORMAL BEHAVIORS AND EATING DISORDERS A TO Z ENTRIES ANOREXIA BIGOREXIA/MUSCLE DYSMORPHIA BINGE-EATING DISORDER BULIMIA CALORIC INTAKE AND EXPENDITURES DEPRESSION AND WEIGHT DIET PILLS EATING DISORDERS, CAUSES OF EATING DISORDERS, SYMPTOMS AND DIAGNOSIS OF EATING DISORDERS IN MEN AND BOYS ETHNICITY, GENETICS, AND EATING DISORDERS EXERCISE FAD DIETS FOOD ALLERGIES INTERNET AND EATING DISORDERS, THE LAXATIVE ABUSE MEDIA AND EATING DISORDERS MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY NUTRITION AND NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES OBESITY PEER PRESSURE PURGING SELF-IMAGE STRESS AND EATING HABITS TREATMENT WEIGHT CONTROL WOMEN AND EATING DISORDERS NORMAL BEHAVIORS AND EATING DISORDERS HAVE YOU EVER EATEN WHEN YOU WEREN’T HUNGRY, JUST BECAUSE SOME- THING TASTED REALLY GOOD? HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TOO NERVOUS OR TOO UPSET TO EAT ANYTHING AT ALL? HAVE YOU FOUND YOURSELF BACK AT THE REFRIGERA- TOR FOR A THIRD TIME WHILE STRUGGLING THROUGH A RESEARCH PAPER? MAYBE YOU’VE COMPARED YOURSELF TO YOUR FRIENDS AND YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS AND WONDERED WHETHER YOUR EATING HABITS WERE NORMAL STATISTICALLY SPEAKING, YOUR EATING HABITS ARE PROBABLY PERFECTLY NORMAL FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS OFTEN AFFECT HOW OFTEN AND HOW MUCH PEOPLE EAT WHEN YOU’RE IN YOUR TEENS, OR AT ANY OTHER AGE, REALLY, IT’S NORMAL TO THINK ABOUT FOOD OFTEN—JUST AS IT’S NORMAL NOT TO THINK ABOUT FOOD VERY OFTEN HOW LARGE A ROLE FOOD PLAYS IN YOUR LIFE WILL VARY BASED ON YOUR UPBRINGING, YOUR PERSONALITY, AND YOUR LIKES AND DISLIKES SOMETIMES, THOUGH, FOOD BECOMES A TRUE OBSESSION, AND THE RESULT IS AN EATING DISORDER EATING DISORDERS ARE SERIOUS ILLNESSES THAT USUALLY INVOLVE EATING WAY TOO LITTLE OR WAY TOO MUCH, AND THEY CAN SERIOUSLY ENDANGER ONE’S HEALTH AT ONE TIME, EATING DISORDERS WERE RARELY MENTIONED AND POORLY UNDERSTOOD TODAY EXPERTS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD OPENLY RESEARCH, TREAT, AND DISCUSS EATING DISORDERS THESE EFFORTS HAVE CHALLENGED MANY EARLY ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT EATING DISORDERS FOR EXAMPLE, THE IDEA THAT THEY ARE LIMITED TO YOUNG, WHITE GIRLS HAS BEEN DEBUNKED ALTHOUGH MANY YOUNG, WHITE GIRLS SUFFER FROM EATING DISORDERS, THEY AFFECT PEOPLE REGARDLESS OF GENDER, ETHNICITY, AND AGE EXPERTS NOW KNOW THAT EATING DISORDERS ARE MENTAL HEALTH DISEASES THAT HAVE RECOGNIZABLE CAUSES, CLEAR SYMPTOMS, AND PREDICTABLE OUT- COMES THEY ALSO RESPOND TO TREATMENT BECAUSE EXPERTS BELIEVE MANY CASES GO UNREPORTED, IT IS DIFFICULT TO ACCURATELY QUANTIFY EXACTLY HOW MANY AMERICANS SUFFER FROM EATING DISORDERS THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF ANOREXIA NERVOSA AND ASSOCIATED EATING DISORDERS (ANAD) REPORTS THAT THE INCIDENCE OF EATING DISORDERS IN THE UNITED STATES HAS REACHED “EPIDEMIC LEVELS,” NAMELY 7 MILLION WOMEN AND 1 MILLION MEN THE NATIONAL EATING DISORDERS ASSOCIATION (NEDA) PUTS THE ESTIMATE EVEN HIGHER, REPORT- ING THAT 10 MILLION WOMEN AND 1 MILLION MEN SUFFER FROM ANOREXIA AND BULIMIA AND THAT MILLIONS MORE HAVE BINGE-EATING DISORDER ALL ESTIMATES SHOW THAT THE GREAT MAJORITY OF SUFFERERS ARE FEMALE, BUT CLEARLY MEN ARE NOT IMMUNE IN ITS 2007 PUBLICATION ON EATING DISOR- DERS, THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH (NIMH) ESTIMATED THAT TO 15 PERCENT OF PEOPLE WITH ANOREXIA OR BULIMIA AND AN ESTIMATED PERCENT OF THOSE WITH BINGE-EATING DISORDER ARE MALE ALTHOUGH EAT- ING DISORDERS MOST OFTEN APPEAR IN THE EARLY TEEN YEARS, THEY ALSO MAY OCCUR IN YOUNG CHILDREN, THE MIDDLE-AGED, AND THE ELDERLY THERE ARE THREE MAIN TYPES OF EATING DISORDERS: ANOREXIA, BULIMIA, AND BINGE-EATING DISORDER ANOREXIA IS SELF-IMPOSED STARVATION AND OCCURS WHEN SOMEONE AVOIDS FOOD TO THE POINT THAT HE OR SHE IS