The diet trends today focus on being slim rather than being healthy and most young women define slim as thin. Marketing and advertising put a lot of emphasis on supermodel body types so that many young women strive hard to achieve that kind of body they see in magazines, on television, and over the internet, so that skipping meals or not eating altogether becomes a habit.

According to the National Institute for Mental Health, there are three main categories of eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and "eating disorders not otherwise specified (EDNOS)".

While eating small food portions to remain thin, and possibly underweight, is the most common eating disorder, there is also another type which is at the different end of the spectrum and marked by obsessive and unnecessary consumption of food. Compulsive overeating and binge eating disorder are characterized by fast gaining of weight or the onset of obesity. They are also examples of EDNOS.

In spite of numerous scientific investigations into the causes of eating disorders, the complex physiological, behavioral, and social correlations among these factors makes it hard for researchers to pin down and come up with definite conclusions.

Anorexia nervosa is marked by a person's refusal to maintain normal and healthy weight, the psychological distortion of body image, an unfounded fear of gaining weight, amenorrhea or absence of menstruation in females, and an extremely troubled eating pattern. Other behavioral indications include obsessive exercise, self-induced vomiting, misuse of diet pills, laxatives, diuretics, and enemas as well as compulsive calorie and fat gram counting.

On the other hand, bulimia nervosa should not be confused with anorexia. People suffering from bulimia nervosa have binge and purge episodes which can be quite unpredictable at times. One day, a person may have the urge to eat and starts on an eating rampage, so to say. A few days after, the person undergoes some emotional distress so that a period of dieting or fasting follows. They may also try exercise excessively; induce vomiting, and the use laxatives, diuretics, and diet pills.

Compulsive eating and binge eating, in contrast, these two disorders are more inclined to eating rather than avoiding it. Compulsive eating is characterized by a certain "addiction" to food as a way to fill a gap they feel inside as well as a way to cope with their emotions. Binge eating is a combination of compulsive eating and bulimia nervosa. People with binge eating disorders tend to eat a lot of food in a short period of time until they are disturbingly full. Most people who have these eating disorders are overweight or obese.

Doctors usually prescribe SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) and other antidepressants for their patients with an eating disorder. However, there are some studies which show that there are certain types of this type of medication which can increase the risk of suicidal thoughts or attempts among patients. There is a significant proportion of the population which has one type of eating disorder, and the number is increasingly alarming. Researchers are still working on defining the basic processes of these disorders.




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