Time to Clear Things Up a Bit

Every day, we are surrounded by pressure from the media to be thin in today’s society. People Instagramming about thigh gaps, articles popping up about ways to lose weight quickly to get that hot summer bod, people body shaming celebrities for putting on a bit of weight. What might not be known is that many of these people who are body shamed or are obsessed with getting thigh gaps are suffering from an eating disorder.

WHAT?!

Most people think that only people (especially women!) who are extremely skinny and bony have eating disorders. That is simply not true. There are many different kinds of eating disorders besides anorexia, such as bulimia, binge eating disorder, rumination, pica, orthorexia, avoidant-restrictive food intake disorder, etc. It’s not only skinny people have eating disorders; those who are overweight or normal weight can have an eating disorder as well! That’s why many people’s eating disorders often go undetected by others since symptoms are not always blatantly noticeable. That’s why it’s such a shock to people when a celebrity makes a public statement announcing that they are suffering from an eating disorder.

Let’s talk about Demi Lovato, for example. She was seen as one of Disney Channel’s angels who was always happy and never got into any scandals. Her fans viewed her as a happy girl who had everything she wanted. She did not look abnormally skinny; she was always smiling… what could ever be wrong with her?

“Just because you’re on Disney & you’re always smiling, they think you’re perfect & it’s obvious that nobody’s life really is.” - Demi Lovato

In 2010, Demi checked herself into rehab for bulimia nervosa and self-injury. She was suffering from bipolar disorder as well. Who would have thought?

This comes to prove my point that eating disorders are mental illnesses and are not always visible to the eye as it is psychological. You can’t just “decide” you want to be anorexic. These kinds of things are often triggered by traumatic events, when diets go awry, cultural pressure to be thin gets out of hand, and even genetics play a huge role in whether you develop the eating disorder.

Demi talked about how she was obsessed with eating food but avoided weight gain by purging in order to cope with her depressive episodes from her bipolar disorder.

Eating disorders are often co-morbid with other mental illnesses, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder or depression. People find it is a coping mechanism for their emotions, even though it is a temporary relief, and the cycle restarts each time. It is like an addiction where once it starts, it is difficult to snap out of the vicious cycle.

Anorexia Nervosa & Bulimia Nervosa

So let’s talk about the different eating disorders and their primary identifiers. How is bulimia nervosa different from anorexia nervosa?

Try not to get shocked when I tell you this, but those with anorexia nervosa are actually obsessed with food.

Um, excuse me?

Yeah, that’s right.

But not with eating food. They significantly restrict their caloric intake, but it is found that they engage in ritualistic behaviors with regards to food, like cutting food into very small pieces, making collages out of pictures of food, cooking for others, but they still won’t eat much.

You know how you get cranky and tense when you are hungry? Yeah, it’s the opposite for those with anorexia. Their anxiety is relieved when they DON’T eat food.

Those with anorexia often have perfectionist behaviors starting in early childhood. Also, those with anorexia tend to be severely underweight after a few months of having this eating disorder.

On the other hand, those who have bulimia nervosa tend to be of normal weight or are overweight. They engage in binge eating, where they have an uncontrollable appetite and can’t stop eating. At that moment, they feel happier and satisfied, but then they feel extremely guilty, leading them to engage in purging behaviors such as self-induced vomiting or excessive exercise.

Let's Get Down to the Nitty Gritty of Eating Disorders

Some interesting stuff about those with bulimia nervosa are that they have increased sensitivity to rewards, so when they give in to their binging behavior, they feel a greater satisfaction in eating than those who do not have bulimia nervosa. It is believed that bulimics have a dysregulation in serotonin levels (hormones that help regulate appetite, mood, and sleep) and dopamine levels (hormones that help regulate action and emotional responses, along with your body’s reward system). 

So when a person with bulimia has low levels of serotonin, they feel down in the dumps, so their body begins to crave food, causing them to binge eat. This causes their serotonin levels to spike, and they temporarily feel good. Who doesn't feel good after eating what they've been craving? But when it gets out of hand, and the person eats too much, they begin to feel sick and regret eating that much, causing them to engage in purging behavior.

But what about those with anorexia nervosa?

When those with anorexia nervosa are presented with food, they have a heightened risk-aversion, keeping them from desiring that food and from being hungry. They need little food to feel satisfied, and they don't feel the "rewarding" feeling of eating food like healthy people do. 

This is caused by a hypoactivation in the hypothylamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (I know, I know. Big words). It controls food motivation and appetite drive. If it's under-active, then it keeps the person from wanting to eat, which maintains the anorexia nervosa.

So they can't just "start eating" because it's not that easy. Imagine if you were completely full, the food did not look appetizing, and someone was telling you to eat it. Why in the world would you eat it then if you don't want it? That's how they feel, which comes to show that eating disorders aren't a choice, but a psychiatric disorder.