EATING DISORDER

Eating disorders are illnesses in which the people experience severe disturbances in their eating behaviors and related thoughts and emotions.

ANOREXIA NERVOSA

People with anorexia generally view themselves as overweight, even if they’re dangerously underweight. They tend to constantly monitor their weight, avoid eating certain types of foods and severely restrict their calories.

Common symptoms of anorexia nervosa

•Being considerably underweight compared to people of similar age and height.

•Very restricted eating patterns.

•An intense fear of gaining weight or persistent behaviors to avoid gaining weight, despite being underweight.

•A relentless pursuit of thinness and unwillingness to maintain a healthy weight.

•A heavy influence of body weight or perceived body shape on self-esteem.

•A distorted body image, including denial of being seriously underweight.

BULIMIA NERVOSA

People with bulimia frequently eat unusually large amounts of food in a relatively short period. Common purging behaviors include forced vomiting, fasting, laxatives, diuretics, enemas and excessive exercise.

Common symptoms of bulimia nervosa:

•Recurrent episodes of binge eating, with a feeling of lack of control

•Recurrent episodes of inappropriate purging behaviors to prevent weight gain

•A self-esteem overly influenced by body shape and weight

•A fear of gaining weight, despite having a normal weight

BINGE EATING

•Individuals with this disorder have similar symptoms to those with bulimia or the binge-eating subtype of anorexia.

•For instance, they typically eat unusually large amounts of food in relatively short periods of time and usually feel a lack of control during binges.

•However, contrary to the two previous disorders, people with binge eating disorder do not restrict calories or use purging behaviors such as vomiting or excessive exercise to compensate for their binges.

Common symptoms of binge eating:

•Eating large amounts of foods rapidly, in secret and until uncomfortably full, despite not feeling hungry.

•Feeling a lack of control during episodes of binge eating.

•Feelings of distress, such as shame, disgust or guilt, when thinking about the binge-eating behavior.

•No use of purging behaviors, such as calorie restriction, vomiting, excessive exercise or laxative or diuretic use, to compensate for the binging.

PICA

Individuals with pica crave non-food substances such as ice, dirt, soil, chalk, soap, paper, hair, cloth, wool, pebbles, laundry detergent or cornstarch. Pica can occur in adults, as well as children and adolescents. That said, this disorder is most frequently observed in children, pregnant women and individuals with mental disabilities.

RUMINATION

It describes a condition in which a person regurgitates food they have previously chewed and swallowed, re-chews it and then either re-swallows it or spits it out.