Eating disorders
5:13 pm
Hello!
So this week is eating
disorders awareness week and I thought it would be optimum to talk about eating
disorders. The majority of us are focused on our appearance, which normally is okay,
but when this leads to extreme behaviours to achieve a certain goal it becomes
unhealthy. For the mind and the body.. therefore leading to eating disorders.
Let’s start by mentioning
the two main eating disorders: anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN). AN
involves the individual trying to remain as ‘thin’ as possible and being
significantly underweight. The sufferer may starve themselves, or may use
laxatives and force themselves to vomit to avoid chances of weight gain. They
will constantly worry that they may gain weight. A major factor of AN involves
the individual having an incorrect perception of their body, denying their low
weight status. In simpler terms, an AN sufferer may believe they are ‘fat’ (even
though they are underweight) and therefore, attempt to become slim by (unhealthily)
trying to lose weight.
Bulimia nervosa, contrary
to popular belief, does not necessarily mean the sufferer is underweight like
AN. Many BN sufferers can have their BMI (body mass index) above their ideal
for their height/age. While trying to control weight with restricted eating, BN
sufferers tend to present recurrent episodes of uncontrollable binge eating. In
such instances, food is often eaten in secret and not for pleasure, with 1000’s
of calories being consumed at once. This can lead to feelings of guilt and
depression. Of course, the individual would try to counteract their excessive
eating episode, by harmful measures (vomiting, use of laxatives). Generally, BN
sufferers engage in forced vomiting after eating meals too. Similar to AN, they
base their self-evaluation upon their body weight/shape.
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| http://www.eatingdisordersadvice.co.uk |
As you may understand,
eating disorders are more serious than most people take them to be. They are
unfortunately very common too. YOU CANNOT ALWAYS TELL IF SOMEONE IS SUFFERING
FROM AN EATING DISORDER, IT IS NOT JUST ABOUT WEIGHT. A sufferer may not necessarily display low weight, or even if they do, it doesn't mean you'll see it. A person with AN does not seek approval of others (with contrast to BN). BN sufferers typically want to seem attractive to others, whereas in AN the individual is more concerned about how they look for themselves.
The language people use
around a sufferer is vital. Constantly praising someone for looking good
because they have lost weight can reinforce their belief that they NEED to be
slim to be appreciated. This is not true! No one should think that, but of
course many do. Unfortunately, society and the media have placed so much
emphasis on the idea that being a ‘size 0’ is attractive that a lot of young
girls and boys think they need to adhere to that. It is important to understand
that what we see in the media is NOT ALWAYS A CORRECT PERCEPTION OF REALITY. There
is often a lot of editing and airbrushing that is done on photos of models. It is
best to stick with a healthy weight for your age and height (check your BMI)
while eating a balanced diet with exercise! If you maintain a healthy lifestyle,
your weight will follow!
Eating disorders can be
dangerous in many ways, especially to the person’s health. It is necessary that
people receive support and help to make this hard time easier for them, and to
allow them to come out from their disorder. You can get help from your
family/friends, but if you are not comfortable doing that then you can always
contact your GP. Other useful sites are:
B-eat (beat eating disorders)
You can also ring their helplines:
Helpline 0845 634 1414
Youthline 0845 634 7650
You can ring Get Connected 0808 808 4994
If you spot an eating disorder in someone else, you could save their life by providing them with help. Common signs someone may show are:
- Complaints of being fat
- Missing meals
- You do not see the person eat, even though they claim to have done
- Excessive focus on calories consumed
- Constantly worried about weighing themselves
- Looking pale
- Rapid loss in weight
- Often wearing loose clothing to hide weight loss
- Calluses on knuckles (from using hand to induce forced vomiting)
- If female, the person complains to have been missing periods (known as amenorrhea)
- They are also experiencing depression/anxiety/obsessive-compulsive disorder
Remember, eating disorders can be treated. All you need to do is get help, for yourself or whoever it is that you know is suffering.
Keep well and stay healthy!
Ayesha xxx
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5 comments
An insightful post dear!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your sweet comment on my blog
xx
http://bffbestfootforward.blogspot.co.uk
great post very helpful dear thanks for sharing. say would you like to follow each other? just let me know on my blog.. hugs http://anotsosecretlife2011.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post for raising awareness! I'm obviously familiar with both of these disorders but I've learned some new facts too. I do think the media is largely to blame, it's tough being a young impressionable girl these days. I saw a photo of Jennifer Lawrence recently which had been photoshopped, JLaw is so beautiful and has such a fantastic figure - I was shocked!
ReplyDeleteTara xo
Hi Ayesha,
ReplyDeleteIt's good of you to raise awareness on this issue which plagues our society today. Love the fact that your blog is more than just beauty and fashion and actually talks about real life issues. Keep up the good work :o)
Love Sheen xxx
Thanks for everyone's lovely comments :) xxx
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading and commenting! Feel free to leave your blog link so I can check it out, but please no follow-for-follow requests! ♥