Eating Disorders

Anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating are types of eating disorders. Eating disorders cause serious emotional and physical problems that can have life threatening consequences for both females and males.

According to Seventeen, “It’s a common misconception that eating disorders are just about food; they are actually much more than that. Eating disorders often stem from feelings of low self-esteem, depression, or anxiety.”

Someone you know or someone you care about could have an eating disorder and you may not know it.

Katharine McPhee, a singer, was suffering from bulimia while she auditioned for American Idol in San Francisco. She enrolled at Los Angeles’ Eating Disorder Center of California, and said it saved her life. According to Caring Online, “... she has learned there is no ‘bad’ food, and you can have everything as long as you watch how much you eat.”

Look closely at your friends and yourself for signs of an eating disorder. The signs may vary depending on the person. It is best to get help sooner for quicker and better recovery.

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder in which the person slowly starves themselves even as they see themselves as overweight. By watching your friends you might infer that they have anorexia according to National Eating Disorders Association. For a sufferer of anorexia, in the body’s cycle of self-starvation, their heart failure risks get higher as blood pressure sinks lower. With no water intake, severe dehydration occurs and can lead to kidney failure.

Actress and singer Demi Lovato suffered from anorexia and bulimia. She started compulsively overeating at a very young age. Lovato almost stopped eating altogether at the age of twelve after being harassed by kids at school, for being “fat.” According to Seventeen, Lovato says, “You can get help, and you can feel better.”

Jessica Alba suffers from anorexia, and according to Caring Online, “[Alba] developed her disorder while preparing for her breakout role in James Cameron’s TV series ‘Dark Angel.’” She has been obsessive about her weight since puberty- cooking her own meals at the age of twelve to avoid becoming overweight like the rest of family. Alba was prompted to seek professional help after her weight dipped below 100 pounds. “With treatment I have now conquered the fear which drove me to become dangerously thin,” Alba said to Caring Online.

Binge eating is an eating disorder in which a person is excessively eating to the point of discomfort. According to nationaleatingdisorders.org, the consequences of binge eating include high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes mellitus. Out of all the people who have a binge eating disorder, about 40 percent are men and 60 percent are women.

‘JAG’ actress, Catherine Bell became depressed ten years ago at the end of a four month modeling tour in Japan. She suffered from binge eating and gained twenty pounds. Support of family/friends and better nutritional eating habits and regular exercise helped her to lose excess weight. Caring Online says, “I’m about 128 pounds,” says Bell. “And that’s OK with me.”

Bulimia is an eating disorder in which a person is excessively eating large quantities of food, and then is damaged from self-induced vomiting or laxative abuse. A consequence of having bulimia is tooth decay caused by the acid in vomit eating away at your teeth.

According to the National Eating Disorders Association, depending on the length of an anorexia condition, five percent to 20 percent struggling will die of it and 90 to 95 percent of sufferers will be women or girls.

For more information on eating disorders, teens can go to nationaleatingdisorders.org. The website has a test you can take to see if you have an eating disorder, and has contacts to call about eating disorders.

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