1. EATING DISORDERS
Eating disorders are mental illnesses that cause serious disturbances in a person’s everyday diet. It can manifest as eating
extremely small amounts of food or severely overeating. The condition may begin as just eating too little or too much but
obsession with eating and food over takes over the life of a person leading to severe changes.
In addition to abnormal eating patterns are distress and concern about body weight or shape. These disorders frequently
coexist with other mental illnesses such as depression, substance abuse, or anxiety disorders.
Eating disorders when manifested at a young age can cause severe impairment in growth, development, fertility and overall
mental and social wellbeing. In addition, they also raise the risk of an early death. People with anorexia nervosa are 18
times more likely to die early compared with people of similar age in the general population.
WHO GETS EATING DISORDERS?
Eating disorders can affect both men and women and are slightly more common among women. Often these disorders begin
during adolescence or young adulthood but may also develop during childhood or later in life.
TYPES OF EATING DISORDERS
* Anorexia nervosa
* Anorexia Athletica
* Bulimia nervosa
* Over Exercise
* Binge-eating disorder
* Night Eating
* Orthorexia
* EDNOS _ Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified
SYMPTOMS OF EATING DISORDERS
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A man or woman suffering from an eating disorder may reveal several signs and symptoms, some which are:
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Chronic dieting despite being hazardously underweight
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Constant weight fluctuations
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Obsession with calories and fat contents of food
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Engaging in ritualistic eating patterns, such as cutting food into tiny pieces, eating alone, and/or hiding food
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Continued fixation with food, recipes, or cooking; the individual may cook intricate meals for others but refrain
from partaking
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Depression or lethargic stage
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Avoidance of social functions, family and friends. May become isolated and withdrawn
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Switching between periods of overeating and fasting
CAUSES OF EATING DISORDERS
There is no single cause for eating disorders. The basic tenet of eating disorders seems to be concerns about weight and
body shape. There are many factors, including cultural, familial, and emotional and personality factors as well as genetic
and biologic factors that may play a role in causation of eating disorders.
Some of the factors that influence eating disorders and its causation include:

2. FAMILY INFLUENCES
Negative influences within the family can trigger and maintain eating disorders.
Poor parenting attitudes and behaviors may be a primary cause. Poor parenting by both mothers and fathers has been
implicated in eating disorders. Often if one of the parents, especially the mothers, had a history of eating disorders, the
child is likely to develop them. Paternal criticism of weight can lead to bingeing and purging in young males, studies show.
Family history of obesity in one or both parents may also be a trigger for bulimia. History of addictions in the family and
other emotional disorders also influences young children. People with either anorexia or bulimia are more likely to have
parents with alcoholism or substance abuse than are those in the general population. In addition, those with bulimia are
more likely to have parents with psychiatric disorders. History of abuse is another common triggering factor. Bulimia
seems to have a positive link with early sexual abuse. History of being teased or ridiculed for size or weight is another
important trigger.
CULTURAL FACTORS
While obesity is a global epidemic, attitude to food is different in different cultures and often triggers one of the eating
disorders. Media influences and pressures on being thin and the overproduction of food both likely play major roles in
triggering obesity and eating disorders. While advertisers are marketing weight-reduction programs and showcasing
anorexic young models as sexually desirable, most clothes are designed and displayed for thin bodies and on the other hand
there is severe criticism towards consuming “junk” food. The influences are confusing especially for the young.
GENETIC INFLUENCES
Most of the eating disorders run in families. Anorexia is eight times more common in people who have relatives with the
disorder. Twins also seem to have a tendency to share specific eating disorders (anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and
obesity). Some studies have linked regions on chromosome 10 to bulimia as well as obesity. Researchers suggest that
genes may determine the interplay of neurotransmitters like serotonin, the brain chemical involved with both well-being
and appetite. Researchers have found certain proteins such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). This protein may
influence an individual's susceptibility to developing an eating disorder.
HORMONAL DISTURBANCES
Usually there may be disturbances in thyroid hormone production among those with eating disorders. Eating disorders are
also linked to stress, well-being, and appetite. Many of these chemical changes are certainly a result of malnutrition or
other aspects of eating disorders. The problem often arises in the limbic system of the brain. A specific system called
hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) may be particularly important in eating disorders. It involves the hypothalamus
that controls among other things, eating, sleeping, and regulates body temperature and emotions along with regulation of
secretion of hormones.
TREATMENT OF EATING DISORDERS
* Eating disorders can be effectively treated. The earlier they are detected, the easier it is to treat them. Recovery can
take months or years, but the majority of people recover. Once diagnosed, treatment is a multidisciplinary approach.
* The health care providers involved include psychiatrists, psychologists, physicians, dieticians or nutritional advisers,
social workers, occupational therapists and nurses.
* Treatment includes diet education and advice, psychological interventions and treatment of concurrent mental ailments
like depression and anxiety disorders.