Just one glance through a women’s magazine and it’s easy to see that “thin is in.” Many supermodels and actresses of the day are literally waif thin and relish in the fact that they are all but skin and bones. It is no surprise that many young women choose to emulate these highly successful and famous people which can often lead them down a dangerous path of an eating disorder. Let it be said, however, that certainly not all thin women are suffering from an eating disorder as some simply have a high metabolism and any dieting or exercise they do has a dramatic affect on their thin frame. But for those women who are suffering from a variety of psychological issues, the horror of an eating disorder may take hold and work too seriously harm their health.

Let’s look at some of the characteristics that people may have that can lead to an eating disorder.

Those that suffer from Insecurity-Anyone that feels insecure about themselves is often more likely to become affected by an eating disorder. They often feel that nothing they do or say is truly good enough for others and this can often relate to how they feel about the way they look as well. They may feel some sense of gratification when they lose weight and get thinner to help battle these feelings of insecurity which if, left unchecked, can spiral out of control and lead to incredibly harmful health situations.

Those that are impressionable-Some folks are more interested in what others are doing and tend to be followers rather than leaders. These people may see those such as the supermodels and actors we mentioned before and assume that they should try to follow in their footsteps. This can lead them to choose the quick path to a skinny body which could certainly turn into an eating disorder.

People who lack discipline-If someone is looking to lose weight very quickly but they lack the discipline necessary to follow a consistent plan of diet and exercise that may take some time to achieve, they may instead choose shortcuts such as throwing up meals they have eaten so as not to gain weight from the calories they consume. While this individual practice may not be an eating disorder itself, it certainly can lead to one if the practice is continued. In addition, such eating disorders as anorexia can occur if the same people choose to quit eating altogether in order to reach their weight loss goals. Those with the discipline will choose a safe and healthy path of weight loss and physical fitness that, while it may take longer, is truly the healthier plan of action.

Those that suffer from depression-Depression can be a serious illness that can result in a variety of negative outcomes including even death. People that suffer from depression may manifest their feelings by engaging in such harmful practices as not eating and binging and purging. They may have an unhealthy attitude towards food because of their overall negative outlook on life. An eating disorder is certainly not the most severe thing that can befall one with depression so if it is ever suspected that someone you know or love or even you may be affected with depression, treatment should be sought immediately.

There is no question that cases of eating disorders among women and young girls have reached epidemic proportions. Recent estimates indicate that there may be as many as 10 million women affected by some type of eating disorder. While some men DO suffer, it is primarily women that are afflicted.

Women succumb to these horrible conditions for the most part due to the media and our society’s perception of beauty in general. Models and actresses are skinny, oftentimes TOO skinny, and when women see these examples of the “perfect” woman in front of them in magazines and movies, they feel the need to want to look like them too. This leads many to dieting and exercise that is sometimes excessive and unhealthy and in extreme cases, can lead to eating disorders.

Other causes may not be beauty related as much as associated with self esteem and even depression. People that are suffering from psychological problems may use food as a means of dealing with these problems and in turn, develop a form of eating disorder. For instance, someone who is clinically depressed may feel like they are “missing” something in their life and they try to replace this emptiness with food. This can lead to a condition known as binging where the person gorges themselves on massive quantities of food only to throw it up again later to avoid weight gain. Others may have an irrational fear of putting on weight and avoid eating altogether and lose tremendous amounts of weight and become malnourished. This is not to be confused with Anorexia, another type of disorder in which the person sees themselves as being fat even when they are thin. They may refuse to eat, force vomit, exercise excessively to lose weight, or a combinations of all of them.

Still, another cause in a minority of the eating disorder population is due to family members who have suffered themselves. In a small minority, it has been found that if a family member has had an eating disorder, someone else in the family will develop one as well.

Because of the severity of these disorders, much research has been done on the treatment of the various types. While there is no “cure” necessary, treatment can be helpful. For instance, in the case of bulimics, sometimes monitoring the patient while they follow a healthy regimen of eating and exercise can help break them of their condition and lead a normal life. Once they realize they can maintain a healthy weight through other means, they stop their binge and purge lifestyle. Anorexics, on the other hand, often may have to be closely monitored and nursed back to health before any real treatment begins. Oftentimes, by the time they get treatment, their bodies are in horrible shape and they are malnourished and extremely sick. Over time, though, they can regain their weight and through psychological treatment, they can work through many of the issues they are dealing with that caused the unhealthy situation in the first place.

Eating disorders of all kinds are on the rise because of the media’s persistence in coupling beauty and sex with being incredibly thin. Young impressionable men and women succumb to these harmful behaviors each and every year and they are increasing at an alarming rate.

There are a variety of reasons that people become stricken with eating disorders but one thing is certain, the process is often long, grueling, and extremely taxing on the person’s health. Once someone becomes involved with an eating disorder it often turns into a vicious cycle that leads them down a path of ill health and despair that gets repeated over and over again and in the worst cases, can lead to death. One such eating disorder is called bulimia nervosa.

Bulimia nervosa is characterized by the sufferer practicing a form of eating called binging where they will eat large amounts of food all at one sitting. This process of gorging themselves is then followed by other harmful practices designed to try and rid themselves of the calories they consumed in order to avoid gaining weight. These practices can include the use of laxatives, other forms of diuretics, intense over exercising sessions, and the most common form of ridding themselves of these calories, purging. What happens initially is there a psychological trigger that leads a person to a binge session. Research has shown that this could be triggered by feelings of anxiety, depression, or insecurely whereas the binge session replaces something that they are lacking in their own life. When they realize what they have done, they want to immediately rid themselves of the potential harmful effects of eating all of that food so they take one of the drastic measures mentioned above. When they do this, they realize that they negated the effect of what they have already done and this leads to positive reinforcement for a very negative act. What then happens is that the person feels that they can binge any time they have those same negative feelings about themselves and all they have to do is exercise, purge, or take diuretics to reverse the effects and everything will be okay. This leads to a never ending harmful cycle that can cause the person all types of medical maladies including diseases of the esophagus, weakening of the heart and teeth and in worst cases, death.

While there is no guaranteed cure for the eating disorder of bulimia nervosa or any other types of eating disorders, there are treatments available by qualified psychologists that can work with the individual to get to the root of the problems causing their unhealthy attitudes about food. It is important that you seek treatment at the first sign of any unhealthy behaviors surrounding food or those of your friends or loved ones around you. Oftentimes, the sufferer does not realize they have a problem until it is too late for them to stop on their own. This vicious cycle of eating disorders can strike without warning and once it takes hold it may continue with no end in sight.

It is a sad fact that one of the most simple and vital acts of human nature, eating, can actually lead folks to develop incredibly harmful habits and even lead to death. While most of us have a very healthy relationship with food and use it to feed our bodies the vital nutrients it needs, others view food in an incredibly different light and use it as a means to control emotions and how they feel about themselves and their weight. This unhealthy view on eating can lead to a variety of eating disorders that can cause malnourishment, sickness, and in the most extreme cases, death.

Oftentimes, food is not the root cause of these disorders but instead various types of psychological disorders such as depression, issues of self esteem, feelings of anxiety, or other types of behavioral disorders such as substance addiction irrational phobias of gaining weight. No matter what the cause, unhealthy practices with food can often lead to harmful eating disorders such as bulimia and anorexia.

Bulimia is characterized by someone who chooses to eat large quantities of food at one setting, known as binging, and then taking harmful steps to avoid the weight gain associated with these gluttonous meals. These harmful practices can be anything from vomiting, ingesting diuretics, or engaging in marathon exercise sessions to try to burn off the calories they consumes. One of the troubles with diagnosing bulimia is that the patient may maintain somewhat healthy levels of weight so that it is hard to tell there is anything wrong. Oftentimes, it is an underlying medical condition such as a throat or stomach disorder (caused by excessive vomiting) that is a tell tale sign.

Another common and incredibly deadly disorder associated with eating is called Anorexia nervosa. This conditioned is characterized by the patient having an irrational fear of gaining weight. Someone with Anorexia may feel like they are fat even though they are extremely underweight and potentially even malnourished. These individuals often quit eating altogether and fast for weeks at a time and lose significant amount of weight, including most of their muscle mass as well. Anorexics may choose self vomiting and laxatives as well as way to encourage consistent weight loss at all times. Unlike Bulimia, it can be fairly obvious to spot a victim of anorexia. Aside from being incredibly thin, they may exhibit yellowish skin, brittle hair and nails, anemia, and an extremely low blood pressure.

While both of these conditions are extremely harmful, they ARE treatable. There are various types of psychotherapy in existence today that will help the patient work through the underlying issues they have that may or may not stem from the food itself, but perhaps other issues leading them to this unhealthy view of themselves and food. It is important to get diagnosed and begin treatment as early as possible as these conditions can continue to get worse and lead to the patient’s death if left unchecked for long periods of time.

Most of us have a normal and healthy relationship with food. We eat to keep our bodies functioning properly, we eat for the sheer taste and enjoyment of it, and we eat together with friends and family as a way to bond and stay in touch with our social partners. It can be very hard for those of us who have normal healthy eating habits to understand the hell that those with eating disorders have to endure on a daily basis.

An eating disorder is an extremely harmful condition in which a person adopts harmful practices involving food as a way to deal with emotional pain. Once the eating disorder has truly taken control of their lives, the sufferer often has no control of their own to break free. They can be stuck in a downward spiral of negative activity that leads to ridicule, concern of family and friends, and a host of negative medical ailments that only gets worse with time. Unfortunately, many people don’t understand these disorders and instead of trying to empathize with their situation, they merely look down on them for having lack of discipline in their eating habits. If it were only as easy as snapping out of it, many who suffer eating disorders certainly would because going through the pain and torture of having an eating disorder can not only be one of the most serious things that ever affects one’s life, it can also lead to one’s death.

Let’s look at a scenario of someone who is suffering from bulimia. Bulimia is a condition in which a person will first binge eat all kinds of food often totaling thousands of calories, and then once they realize what they have done, they choose to force themselves to vomit to avoid gaining weight from all those calories. In addition, they may resort to such tactics as using laxatives to lose weight or even exercising for hours at a time to burn off any excess fat they did gain. These individuals feel a strong compulsion to this binge and purge relationship with food and often simply can’t break free. Believe me it can be incredibly difficult to suffer with because many bulimics maintain a fairly normal weight and others may not know about their condition. This leaves the sufferer to keep their condition in the dark and they may suffer alone for years before the secret ever comes out.

It is important for us as individuals and members of society to try to understand that people suffering from eating disorders have a sickness which they have little control over. Because of the stigmas associated with them, many folks won’t ever seek treatment for fear that their secret will become public and they would have to deal with the shame thrown on them by their peers. If we could begin to use compassion versus criticism, many more people may seek to speak about the troubles that they are suffering from and seek help from others to rid themselves of horrible conditions such as eating disorders.

As eating disorders and various types of addictions have been diagnosed and studied for some time, interesting correlations are being made between that of drug addiction and eating disorders.

At one time, it was thought that eating disorders we simply related to unhealthy attitudes about food and various psychological conditions, but now other relationships are being discovered. For instance, it is theorized that some eating disorders are caused by drug addiction. This is not to say that the reasons for the drug addiction are not similar in nature to those that cause eating disorders, only that there may not be a direct causal relationship. There may be other cause and effect relationships that occur. Here is an example.

It has been discovered that some folks who are addicted to certain types of opiates don’t eat as much because the food interferes with the effects of the drugs. This lack of eating can continue and eventually lead to a full blown eating disorder. Another scenario that can exist is that of purging. Some narcotics have the effect of making a person nauseous and therefore lead to them throwing up. This throwing up constantly leads to them losing weight. They may like how they look and continue the practice of purging whether or not the drugs are in their system.

Another interesting and potentially incredibly harmful connection between drugs and food addiction has to do with the prescribing of medications to those suffering from eating disorders. Sometimes, doctors feel the need to prescribe medications to curb certain symptoms of eating disorders. Because of the patients weakened state both mentally and physically, they can often become addicted to these drugs. This leads the patient to CONTINUE to exhibit some of the traits associated with the disorder so as to try to keep getting the prescription of drugs. This can be incredibly hard to diagnose if it seems the patient is making some progress with the use of the drugs. If the drugs are taken away, the patient (sometimes knowingly, sometimes not) begins to exhibit more increasing practices of eating disorders leading the doctor to put the patient back on the drugs. It is therefore incredibly important that any physician or facility that you or loved ones seek to deal with this problem be well versed in the fine line that must be walked with acting to treat eating disorders through the use of drugs.

In addition, It is equally important for drug specific treatment facilities to understand the symptoms and signs of eating disorders as sometimes patients coming off drugs develop eating disorders to deal with latent psychological issues and the fact that they don’t have drugs in their system that before, acted to suppress their issues.

The exact relationships between drugs and eating disorders is not completely known at this time, but ongoing research should help paint a much clearer picture for both doctors and patients and lead to much more effective treatments for both conditions over time.

We’ve all heard that we should be eating healthy foods as part of our diet. This emphasis on eating healthy has been shown to be good for everything about our bodies including maintaining healthy weight and avoiding all types of medical ailments including certain types of cancers, heart disease, and strokes. While many people simply ignore this advice and continue to eat the unhealthy processed foods that they enjoy the most, some folks adopt a healthy lifestyle that includes eating organic fruits and vegetables and only high quality proteins such as grass fed beef and certain types of fish. These healthy individuals enjoy an overall healthier and disease free life than those with worse diets, but some take their healthy ways just a bit too far.

Because of all the interest in eating healthy and maintaining weight, it seems that a new type of eating disorder has emerged and it is called orthorexia nervosa. Orthorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that is characterized by someone becoming obsessed with eating healthily to the point that they eventually can become unhealthy. These individuals become so obsessed with food that they will only eat certain types of only the highest quality and healthiest foods and if they can’t get them, they oftentimes simply won’t eat at all. In addition, they plan out their days meals and sometimes they do so even weeks in advance by labeling containers with specific measured portions of food to ensure that they never over eat even by 1 calorie.

This obsession causes the sufferer to become very judgmental of what other people eat and they often put down others food choices whether they are in the supermarket, a restaurant, or in their own homes. This leads them to become alienated by others who see their comments as ridiculous because of the obvious obsessive nature of their focus on this supposedly healthy lifestyle. As the condition progresses, it worsens to the point where those who suffer from orthorexia nervosa begin to eventually limit the different types of foods they will eat because of supposedly ill effects from them and they may see one food source, organic carrots for example, as the only kind of food that they will choose to eat at all. While this condition can leave them to be extremely thin and eventually malnourished, it is not to be mistaken for anorexia nervosa which has some similar traits but is certainly a different condition altogether.

While eating healthy and exercising is something that certainly all of us should look to incorporate into our lives, obsessing to the point that our bodies  suffer from emaciation and malnutrition is certainly something that no one should have to endure. It is important to seek treatment from a qualified physician at the first sign that someone is taking what could be a healthy lifestyle and instead turning it into a dangerous eating disorder and food obsession. Orthorexia nervosa is a new but extremely serious eating disorder and should be viewed as such by peers rather than looked down upon as simply the obsessive acts of a crazy and misinformed person.

For most of us, eating is a normal and often entertaining activity. Aside from the fact of simply replenishing the nutrients our body needs in order to properly function, eating with friends and family can be a joyous and bonding experience as well. Sharing meals with others can be a time to reflect on the day’s activities or even recall incidents from the past that we shared with one another. For some, however, eating can be a scary time that is filled with sadness, conflicting emotions, and followed by a sense of guilt and loss of self worth. These can stem from those individuals who take part in the act of binge eating.

Now, most of us can recall a time where we sat down to eat and we filled our bellies overflowing by taking in a huge meal that was surely more than we needed to eat. Perhaps it was a special occasion such as a holiday or we were simply sitting down to a meal after not having eaten in a while. No matter the case, most of the time these incidences are a normal part of life but for some, they are a daily activity.

Binge eaters feel a compulsion to eat as much food as they can get their hands on when they engage in these sessions. They eat well beyond their feelings of being full and often don’t stop until their body tells them it’s time to regurgitate. This compulsion to over eat may stem from a variety of psychological conditions that could include depression, forms of anxiety, insecurity issues, or simple addictions to food. No matter what the cause, binge eating is a harmful practice that can lead the sufferer down a road of horror and despair that sometimes even leads to their own death.

One of the harmful side effects of binge eating is how these individuals get rid of the massive amount of calories they consume at any one meal. Some of them choose to simply go into the bathroom and throw up their meal. This is perhaps one of the most common and affects many young women who are trying to emulate the supermodels they see in magazines and on TV. Another practice is that of taking diuretics which are different types of pills or drinks that will speed up the metabolism and flush the food from your system and make you basically pass all the calories through your body before they are absorbed. One of  the final harmful practices that these binge eaters partake in is that of exercising. This is not regular exercise though, but intense sessions that often last for two hours or more where the person will exercise to the point of exhaustion just to burn off the calories they had eaten.

So it is important to manage the amount of food you take in at any one time. If you notice someone else who seems to exhibit the symptoms of the binge eater, it is important to seek professional help so that the problem does not exacerbate and lead to a more harmful state of ill health.

Just about all of us at one time or another has been on a “diet.” Whether you need to lose a lot of weight or merely try to tone up a bit before the beach season, dieting is a common and accepted practice by almost everyone. The fact is, however, dieting often leads to the exact opposite effect which is you end up gaining weight rather than losing it. Some statistics show that people who are involved in moderate diet programs are up to five times as likely to gain more weight than they started with and those that are involved in extremely intense diet programs are nearly 20 times as likely to gain weight.

The reasons for this weight gain are fairly easy to understand when you look at some of the facts surrounding them. First of all, many diets promise quick weight loss but that doesn’t necessarily mean healthy weight loss. If your diet program sees you eating an extremely low amount of calories and losing significant weight in a short period of time, it is very common for people to over eat once the diet ends and thus gain back all the weight they lost and sometimes even more. In addition, those who are on diets that are restricting the calories have less energy and therefore oftentimes engage in less exercise as a result. If they simply lose weight by restricting calories and not exercising then this inactivity will lead to weight gain once the diet is over and they began eating normally again. Because of these negative effects of dieting, many folks choose extreme measures surrounding their goal of weight loss which can lead to several types of harmful eating disorders.

One reason people fall prey to eating disorders stemming from failed diets is that they become simply frustrated with the up-and-down process of weight gain and weight loss associated with these diet plans. They may choose instead to eat whatever they want and simply throw the food up so as not to gain weight from the calories. This is known as bulimia and is an extremely harmful eating disorder that often stems from failed dieting. People assume that diets just don’t work so they’re going to go about it their own way which is often counterproductive to their real goals.

Another eating disorder that can stem from a diet is known as anorexia. This can occur if someone is on a diet that is extremely calorie restricted and loses weight but then only gains it back once they start eating properly again. This can lead them to stop eating altogether as it was that part of the diet that seemed to work well for them. Unfortunately, they may never start eating again and lose extreme amounts of weight and they can eventually die from starvation.

Diets in and of themselves are not necessarily harmful if the proper amounts of nutrition and exercise come into play. It is only when diets are not followed properly or consistently that yo-yo dieting can occur and may lead to harmful eating disorders.

Each year, thousands of young women succumb to the horrors of some form of eating disorder. Many of these stem from a sense of low self esteem or perhaps depression and lead these women into various harmful activities involving food in an effort to lose weight and look their best. Ironically, the result of these activities actually results in the opposite, and the victims of eating disorders often look and feel much worse than they did before they began the harmful pratctices. One of these disorders is called bulimia nervosa and it involves the act of binging on food and then purging it back out so as to not gain weight from it. This can result in a variety of negative health condition for the sufferer including diseases of the esophagus and heart. Because of the severity of the problem and lack of effective treatments, a new treatment has been designed called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-Enhanced or CBT-E.

The practices of traditional Cognitive Behavioral Therapy have been around for many years. It has been used to treat such sickness as depression, anxiety, addictions, phobias and other issues. It works to uncover thoughts and emotions that are harmful and/or irrational and instead replace them with positive and reinforcing ones. Because of the lack of a really successful track record with issues such as eating disorders, especially bulimia, researchers have recently develop a more extensive program with CBT-E.

CBT-E, developed by Doctor Christopher Fairburn, is a little more in depth of a process than traditional CBT in that is delves deeper into the psychological issues that can surround the patient’s eating disorder versus just the psychology of the patient in general. While the treatment is limited in duration, the exact amount of sessions are to be determined by doctor and patient and can involve both inpatient and outpatient treatments depending on the severity of the condition. In addition, the treatment also has a version that has been developed to treat younger patients (younger than 18). CBT-E has been shown to be effective for both men and women and while length of overall treatment can vary, most patients will finish treatment after 20 weekly sessions have been completed.

While no true “cure” has been developed and proven to work for eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa, because CBT-E works to treat both general psychological issues as well as the specific symptoms of the disorder itself it has shown some interesting promise as of late. The treatment is quite new and is not widely available in clinics as of yet but as testing continues and results are reported, researchers are optimistic that CBT-E may become a widely used treatment in the area of eating disorders such as bulimia in the near future. This is great news for the thousands of suffers who face illness or in extreme cases, death, at the hands of these horrible disorders that literally take control of their lives.