Are You Struggling With Eating Issues of Any Kind

Eating disorders are illnesses in which the people experience severe disturbances in their eating behaviours and related thoughts and emotions. People with eating disorders typically become pre-occupied with food and their body weight.
 
In many cases, eating disorders occur together with other psychiatric disorders like anxiety, panic, obsessive compulsive disorder and alcohol and drug abuse problems. New evidence suggests that heredity may play a part in why certain people develop eating disorders, but these disorders also afflict many people who have no prior family history.
 
Without treatment of both the emotional and physical symptoms of these disorders, malnutrition, heart problems and other potentially fatal conditions can result. Eating disturbances may include inadequate or excessive food intake which can ultimately damage an individual’s well-being. The most common forms of eating disorders include Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge Eating Disorder and affect both females and males.
 
Although these conditions are treatable, the symptoms and consequences can be detrimental and deadly if not addressed. Eating Disorders are complex disorders, influenced by a facet of factors. Though the exact cause of eating disorders is unknown, it is generally believed that a combination of biological, psychological, and/or environmental abnormalities contribute to the development of these illnesses.
 
Examples of biological factors include:

• Irregular hormone functions
• Nutritional deficiencies

 
Examples of psychological factors include:

• Negative body image
• Poor self-esteem

 
Examples of environmental factors that would contribute to the occurrence of eating disorders are:

• Dysfunctional family dynamic
• Professions and careers that promote being thin and weight loss, such as ballet and modelling
• Aesthetically oriented sports, where an emphasis is placed on maintaining a lean body for enhanced performance.
• Family and childhood traumas: childhood sexual abuse, severe trauma
• Cultural and/or peer pressure among friends and co-workers
• Stressful transitions or life changes

 
A man or woman suffering from an eating disorder may reveal several signs and symptoms, some which are:

• Chronic dieting despite being hazardously underweight
• Constant weight fluctuations
• Obsession with calories and fat contents of food
• Engaging in ritualistic eating patterns, such as cutting food into tiny pieces, eating alone, and/or hiding food
• Continued fixation with food, recipes, or cooking; the individual may cook intricate meals for others but refrain from partaking
• Depression or lethargic stage
• Avoidance of social functions, family, and friends. May become isolated and withdrawn
• Switching between periods of overeating and fasting

 
Contact me if you think you or a family member or friend is struggling with an eating disorder - [email protected] or on 084 779 4889. Visit my website on www.nadinetherapy.co.za.
 
Credit: www.eatingdisorderhope.com; www. psychiatry.org