What Is an Eating Disorder? How to Know If You Suffer from It?

Eating disorders are a range of psychiatric conditions that may be characterized by restricting food intake, binging or rapidly consuming large amounts of food, and purging or eliminating calories through vomiting, laxatives, excessive exercise, and other harmful means.

"They said I was thin; I knew that wasn't true"; "I felt empty, so I ate; then I felt guilty, so I got rid of it"; and "Once I started eating, I couldn't stop!" If any of these statements resonate with you, you may be experiencing an eating disorder. These disorders affect millions across the world and generally begin in adolescence.

For those who have not been through an eating disorder, it could be hard to understand that it is not solely about food or the pursuit to “look beautiful.” Why do people constantly look for specific foods and measure the calories they take in with every bite? Why do they experience guilt on eating certain foods and feel like they haven't lived up to the standards?

If you are suffering from an eating disorder, every day is a challenge as you feel lost when you miss a particular meal or exercise routine. Your plans for the entire day are disrupted. Dinner dates can make you feel anxious; you may be fretting about the food if you not have been at the restaurant or cafe before. You might even end up avoiding dinner outings with your friends and family. Self-image, food, eating, and body weight become an unending source of anxiety for someone with an eating disorder. A telling effect on social relationships is also felt.

Eating disorders are not a trend; they are quite serious concerns! (Photo by annie spratt via unsplash)

Types of Eating Disorders

A common perception about eating disorders is that they only affect women. While women are more concerned about body image, men have grooming and desirability issues related to weight. According to a survey conducted by SELF magazine, 65% of American women and 1 in 3 men have experienced eating disorders.

1. Bulimia

Bulimia nervosa includes binge eating, and bulimics try to compensate it through purging behaviors.

While it is true that bulimia can be hard to detect because those suffering from it tend to be secretive and very good at hiding their activities, there are still red flags to alert that you may be going through an eating disorder.

Hiding the body with baggy clothes

Eating disorders can make us question our body image every day. The dissatisfaction with your body can make you choose oversized clothes or cause a general disinterest in the cut of what you wear.

Atypical behaviors while eating

You might feel the urge to purge right after a meal, so you disappear quickly when your friends are passing around the dessert. If you spend too much time exercising or in the gym, you may be experiencing bulimia.

Dental issues

Frequent purging builds up in acid levels in the mouth, which leads to tooth decay, erosion, discoloration and loss of teeth.

Dehydration/Weakness

Purging may deprive you of adequate potassium and calcium, which can lead to a severe electrolyte imbalance and make you feel dehydrated throughout the day. The cost of purging is much higher than the benefit, if any.

2. Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia is diagnosed when someone restricts their food intake and loses weight until they are significantly below the typical body weight. It may seem inititally that you have control over your body weight, but if left untreated, it can cause some really serious medical conditions like bone and heart problems.

3. Binge Eating Disorder

In binge eating disorders, people eat large amounts of food in a really short period of time. They feel out of control and helpless about their desire to eat, yet they can't stop. Binge eating disorders can lead to a lot of medical problems, like obesity, high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes. You could feel ashamed of yourself. This is the classic "eat-and-guilt" sign of binge eating behavior.

4. Avoidant or Restrictive Food Intake Disorder

In this kind of eating disorder, you consciously undereat due to a lack of interest in food or you have an intense distate in how certain foods look, smell, or taste. You may lose weight but experience fatigue, mood disorders, and nutritional deficiencies due to eating less than required.

5. Pica

Pica is an eating disorder in which individuals consume non-food items such as rocks, paper, chalk, ice, and hair. Although the causes of this are unknown, researchers believe that it may be caused due to stress, developmental disorders, and low socioeconomic status. Pica is most often reported along with nutritional deficiencies. This disorder has an especially high risk of infections and poisoning.

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Takeaway

Once you have identified an eating disorder that has you in its grip, you need to go all out to climb out of it. It requires acceptance and patience during the recovery. You should seek a holistic approach combining diet plans, medication (with proper guidance), counseling, and behavioral techniques to get you on track to a healthy and fulfilling relationship with food. Seek out medical help and involve your loved ones. Remember, food nourishes our body and mind, and so we should look for balance in how we approach eating.