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. 

What Needs to be Done

So now that I've talked about the two most common types of eating disorders and their differences... what needs to be done? How can we identify who has those eating disorders, and how can we help them?

If you think a loved one is acting differently than usual and you think they might have an eating disorder, help needs to be obtained for them as soon as possible!

Here are some signs if someone possibly has an eating disorder:

• eating habits have changed drastically
• afraid to eat in public
• only eats "safe" foods
• often excuses self from the table after eating 
• depressed mood
• withdrawal from socializing
• excessive exercising
• moody, irritable, emotional
• denial of any suspicions of their eating disorder
• excessive indulgence in food
• sudden weight loss or weight gain
• obsessed with looking thin
• constantly comparing oneself to others
• obsessive-compulsive behaviors

Unfortunately, some eating disorders aren't identified in time, and complications can occur, such as the following:

• anxiety, depression, suicidal tendencies
• acute respiratory disease
• low blood pressure
• heart failure
• low body temperature
• pancreatitis, acid reflux, constipation
• decrease in muscle mass and bone density
• anemia
• weak immune system
• poor wound healing
• hair loss
• dry skin

10% of those with anorexia nervosa die because of cardiac failure or suicide.

I would like to end this blog post on this note:

Isabelle Caro, the French model pictured above who suffered from Anorexia Nervosa since the age of 13, passed away in November of 2010. She wanted this advertisement to shock others so that they would know how serious eating disorders really are. Caro said she had a troubled childhood where her mom feared she would grow, and she would obsess over measuring Caro's height and wouldn't let Caro play outside with children because she believed the air would make her grow. Caro coped with this oppressive childhood by limiting her eating and developing anorexia nervosa. She hated this illness but was chained to it psychologically. She warned people of being obsessed with beauty and being skinny because it could lead to harmful behaviors, like her illness.

Having an eating disorder is not a choice, but those with it can be helped.