Eating Disorders Overview

While we have been dealing all this while on topics related to obesity – diet plans and diet pills – it would be a good idea to now shift the focus slightly to another equally crucial topic – eating disorders, to round off this series on weight loss and obesity.

In the context of obesity being a direct outcome of eating too much, it becomes important to be aware of the disorders related to eating too much or eating too less. The latter is the other end of the spectrum, and can be a direct result of excessive dieting, and hence needs to be discussed.

More than 10 million Americans suffer from eating disorders

In the United States, the number of people afflicted by eating disorders is quiet high. Studies by the National Eating Disorders Association have shown that more than 10 million Americans, both men and women suffer from some form of eating disorder or the other, usually anorexia or bulimia. In this article we will discuss the different eating disorders.

What are Eating Disorders?

Eating disorders are a set of illnesses wherein the patient resorts to abusing their bodies by excessive indulgence or abstinence of food.

It is important to know that a person suffering from an eating disorder need not necessarily overeat. He or she can go to the other extreme and starve themselves. You can say that the psychology of the patient makes him resort to such extreme measures to be able to draw attention to himself.

It is a kind of self-flagellation, in a way. Generally, a person suffering from an eating disorder will most likely have a very low self esteem.

Eating dosrders are mainly psycjological in origin

An eating disorder is a very dangerous condition, because it refuses to go away easily. The causes of eating disorders are rarely physical; almost always they are caused due to emotional upheavals and circumstances causing a lowering of self esteem in the individual.

At a very basic level, a good example would be indulging oneself with chocolate whenever he feels blue or down. The same thing, at a more extreme level, is what constitutes an eating disorder.

In most cases, eating disorders are a way for the psyche of a person to respond to external stimuli like stress, or internal stimuli like sadness and misery.

Since the basic cause for eating disorders lies in the mind, there is no physical cure for it. While physical steps are possible to control or alleviate the condition, a permanent cure would be possible only by addressing the issues that cause the turmoil and lowering of self esteem in the first place.

Therefore it becomes vital for a psychiatrist or counselor to make the initial assessment of the seriousness of the condition. This person can then also suggest the form of treatment required.