In this article, I’ll walk along with you into the psychological disorders that have strong relationships with food, body weight and body shape. The way we consume food is not a lifestyle choice anymore, it has become a serious mental illness these days. Yes, eating disorders are becoming a serious illness issue and requires more effort and care.
“Disorder” is nothing but the way of carrying and pursuing things in an abnormal way.
I hope that now you can connect yourself with eating disorders. If not, let me do that. This is a mental disorder that can negatively affect a person’s physical and mental health. The specific causes are really unpredictable. But, some factors like the cultural idealization of thinness, sexual abuse and depression have been the contributing factors till now.
Know what? Eating disorders are psychological conditions that causes unhealthy eating habits and experts say that if left untreated may even result in death. Youngsters are most often the prey to eating disorders with symptoms like binge eating, restriction of food, excessive dieting and exercising.
Psychologists also have research results proving that the personality traits also play a major role in causing eating disorders.
Come, let’s discuss in detail.
The first disorder we gonna discuss is the most common disorder.
Anorexia
Anorexia nervosa is a common disorder that many of us possess. As said earlier, youngsters and especially women are prone to anorexia. People who are more conscious about the way they look generally keep on monitoring their weight. As a result, they start restricting certain types of food that leads to underweight. In one line, people who fear gaining weight suffer from this disorder.
Instead of eating healthy food to remain fit, they avoid eating food (self-starvation). Most of the anorexia sufferers are those who are really fit but they themselves criticize to be overweight and end up in extreme dieting.
Causes
Warped ideas and beliefs regarding the way they look are the major cause of anorexia. The other major reason is the professions that promote, recognize and endorse thin people as ideal stereotypes. Other than these, childhood trauma, criticisms and pressure among friends are also the causes for anorexia.
Symptoms
1. Extreme dieting
2. Rapid weight loss due to extreme exercising.
3. Depression
4. Hair loss and absence of menstruation
5. Self-isolation
6. Fatigue and insomnia
If left untreated, this leads to severe complications like heart failure, high risk of fractures, kidney problems, decreased testosterone in males and irregular menses in females.
Simple ways to deal with anorexia
1. Start eating small amount of food and gradually increase the intake.
2. Experts recommend that a gain rate of 0.5 – 1.5 kg per week is advisable. So fix a weight target and achieve it by including 3500 – 7000 calories per week.
Orthorexia
“Eating healthy can become a disorder”
Okay, I can sense you. Even I had the same doubt like how can eating healthy become a disorder. To know that, you should continue reading.
Otheraxians are sufferers who are highly obsessed with the rules that they have created regarding pure and healthy foods. They exclusively count on every little calorie, the amount of protein, vitamin and nutrients they consume while eating. They are people who carry the tagline “healthy food” 24/7 along with them.
They don’t enjoy food, instead, they keep on calculating. It can be acceptable in the way if they love eating healthy food. They are conscious not out of love, but because of the deep-rooted fear. This is simply known as unhealthy obsession with healthy eating. Orthorexia revolves around quality and not quantity of food.
As the focus on eating healthy food becomes more extreme than simply maintaining a healthy diet, orthorexia starts heading out. Perfectionism is the main cause of orthorexia. Athletes are easily prone to this disorder. To identify it’s presence is very challenging and if left untreated it leads to irreversible damage to a person’s health. Being mindful of the foods we eat is completely fine. But being obsessed leads to developing a disorder.
Bulimia
“Believe me ya” it is a serious threatening disorder. Binge eaters are prone to this order. Bulimia is a kind of eating disorder that can be seen in people who eat large amounts of food with a loss of control at one particular time. Between, what they do to get rid of those extra calories seems to be the most awkward way of purging.
To get rid of the extra calories, they induce vomiting, weight-loss supplements, use laxatives and enemas. These sound very strange. Right? Some of the bulimia sufferers indulge in decent ways of extreme dieting and exercising as soon as they binge eat. Fear of gaining weight, constantly worrying, using restroom after eating, damaged teeth and repeated episodes of abnormal eating are the symptoms of bulimia.
Anorexia is the disorder that experiences the fear that we get on gaining weight so that we indulge in self-starvation. Whereas, bulimia is the kind of disorder that experiences fear on gaining weight after binge eating. Social expectations and genetic reasons are the main causes of bulimia that begin in late teens especially in women than in men.
Bulimia is hard to overcome and it can even induce suicidal thoughts. Seeking a psychologist or a nutritionist at an early stage is best and advisable than self-help.
Pica
This disorder is common among children than in adults. This is a kind of disorder that involves eating non-food substances such as chalk, sand, soap, laundry detergent, etc.. Pica sufferers have a high risk of eating poisoning substances. I knew many of my friends who still crave for chalk powder. I guess, even you might have come across or even you could be one among.
As per nutritionists, lack of iron content and other nutrients increases the craving for non-food substances. Pregnant women are also prone to this disorder. There is no specific way of preventing pica other than self-control and supervision.
Let us know through your comments if you have come across other interesting and different disorders.
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