Help With Eating Disorders

Understanding the most common eating disorders

1. Binge eating disorder

Binge eating disorder is recurring episodes of eating more food in a short period of time. People who have binge eating disorder tend to eat more than most people would be able to under similar circumstances with episodes marked by feelings of lack of control.

2. Anorexia Nervosa

How to become anorexic? Anorexia Nervosa is formed by two words namely anorexia which means loss of appetite, and Nervosa which means for reasons of the nerves. Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder mainly categorized by extreme, self-imposed weight loss of at least 15% of the individual’s minimum normal weight.

People with anorexia nervosa have the fear of gaining weight and distorted view of their bodies. Due to being afraid to gain weight, these people are underweight and have restrictive behavior.

They usually do purging, exercise, and regular weight checks. They have practice or observe food rituals like cutting a whole fruit into smaller pieces and eating variations of food in sequence. Also, people with anorexia nervosa tend to refuse to eat in front of other people.

People with anorexia nervosa have low self-esteem, over-reaction to stressful situations, need for approval, need for control, etc. Also, these people feel alone and sensitiveness to peer pressure. They have this perfectionist attitude as well. Group of people who have a big number in this eating disorder is athletes, teens or early adulthood, etc. Most of which are women.

There are multiple possible causes for having anorexia nervosa. These are the most likely causes;

a. Genetic -this gives them a signal that conveys hunger and fullness are the main cause

b. Biological- lower functioning of the hypothalamus

c. Social or environment- peer groups, popular culture, and higher rates where thinness is valued are the main causes.

3. Bulimia Nervosa

Bulimia Nervosa means “ox hunger”. This is an eating disorder which is mainly characterized by recurrent episodes of binge eating. The disorder is rapid consumption of large amount of food in a discrete period of time, followed by attempts of purging the excess by using of vomiting laxatives. These people most likely either have a normal weight or overweight.

Biological cause;

a. The main cause is the deficiency in the neurotransmitter serotonin which plays a role in both mood regulation and appetite.

How to help people with binge eating disorder treatment;

Since we already understand and know what these eating disorders are, we can now take a step further in helping people with these types of eating disorders.

Treating an eating disorder varies from each individual. There are therapies, behavioral therapies, medications, and other treatment methods.

Deciding on the possible way of treatment solutions should be based on the individual’s circumstances and needs.

Communicate with the person. It would be good to communicate with the person and talk about his or her condition

Try to understand and learn how to cope with eating disorders. If you can not do it yourself, ask help from other people. This is to ensure that you follow the proper steps and not go into a different and erroneous path like unhealthy diet, etc.