Eating Disorders
- Do you obsess about food, weight, and/or exercise?
- Are you frequently dissatisfied with your appearance?
- Do you feel you are no longer able to manage your eating and/or weight?
- Would you like to find freedom and peace in your life again?
If you have answered YES to any or all of these questions, you are in the right place.
Here you will find more information on what eating disorders are, what the signs and symptoms include, and what the current DSM-IV criteria is for both anorexia and bulimia.
Important Note: The information viewed on this site is NOT a substitute for a professional evaluation and/or diagnosis.
What are Eating Disorders?
Eating disorders are complex illnesses developing from a combination of physiological, psychological and socio-cultural factors. Consistent with other addictive disorders, eating disorders are progressive in nature and show predictable symptoms. Left untreated they can be fatal.
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 nervosa and bulimia nervosa are 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. - Wikipedia
Our society’s preoccupation with body image is reflected in the fact that, at any given time, 70% of women and 35% of men are dieting. More seriously, a 1993 Statistics Canada Survey reported that in women between the ages of 15 and 25, 1-2% have anorexia and 3-5% have bulimia. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of all mental illnesses, with 10% to 20% eventually dying from complications.
Clearly, these potentially life-threatening conditions are a growing problem. Despite their collective label, these disorders are not about food. Eating disorders are a way of coping with deeper problems that a person finds too painful or difficult to deal with directly. They are complex conditions that signal difficulties with identity, self-concept and self-esteem. -Canadian Mental Health Association
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) published by the American Psychiatric Association, is what clinicians and physicians use as a standard for evaluation and diagnosis. Currently, the DSM-IV categorizes eating disorders as: Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (disorders of eating that do not meet the criteria for either anorexia or bulimia). Each of these primary eating disorders are defined by abnormal eating behaviours.
Eating too much or too little is not the issue, since nearly everyone has pursued one or both of these behaviours at one time or another. But, like many other addiction problems, a substance and/or behaviour is not a problem until carried to extremes, when they then can become dangerous and potentially fatal.
The sooner someone seeks help, the better. However, many find it difficult to acknowledge that they have a problem and individuals struggling with eating disorders often keep it secret from others. If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, you are not alone. Many men and women have eating disorders and recovery is possible.
