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.




Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kenji_Tanaka

If you are a compulsive overeater you may have mixed feelings about eating out in restaurants. Although you enjoy eating, perhaps you feel fearful about being tempted to consume certain foods you love that you believe are "bad" because they lead to binge eating. Your inner dialogue sounds like this: I love this food so much that I cannot eat just one portion. If I eat it I will continue to eat too much. If I do, I am bad so I might as well keep eating since I have already "blown it." Afterwards I will hate myself, and vow to never do it again.

One way to get past your anxiety about eating with others in a public place is to try Restaurant Therapy. Invite a friend to participate with you. Make sure it is someone you trust, someone you can be honest with. Take these instructions with you and follow each step without rushing.

Pick a restaurant that has a large and varied menu. After you are seated, look around and take stock of the setting. Ask yourself how anxious or fearful you are on a scale of 1 to 10. Talk about the anxiety or fear. What are you telling yourself? If you are very anxious, explore alternative ideas to calm yourself.

1. Take the menu and look through it quickly. Rate your level of anxiety again, 1 to 10. What are your thoughts?

2. With your friend, discuss the menu in great detail. Which foods or areas of food (desserts, sandwiches, drinks) are you telling yourself are strictly out of bounds? Why? What are your rules about these foods? What are the labels you put on them? Many of my clients will not eat bread because they have labeled it fattening.

3. How hungry are you now? Are you eating because you should? How much food do you really want? How much food can you allow yourself to eat? Are the answers the same for both these questions or do you keep yourself hungry? What are you telling yourself about portions and amounts of food on this menu?

4. Which foods on the menu make you feel safe? Why? What are your beliefs about these foods?

5. Pretend that you are dining with someone else who may not be as sympathetic to your problem as your present companion. What do you imagine that person would expect of you? How much and what kind of foods would you feel you had to order and/or eat to please that person or others? Be specific. Name at least three important people in your life with whom eating is uncomfortable for you. What do you think they might be thinking when you are together? What do they actually say to you at the table? How do you feel about each one? How would you like it to be?

6. Check your level of anxiety or fear again. Where is it now? Are you feeling any more comfortable?

7. Close the menu. Think about the taste or texture sensation that you would like to have right now. Do you want hot or cold food, a large or small amount, chewy, crunchy, or smooth; salty, sweet, sour, or spicy? Imagine what food or foods would fit the bill. Name the food. Is this a food you allow yourself to eat? How do you feel about eating it? How much do you want? Is it on the menu? If it is not, are you willing to ask the waitress if you can get it, such as one scrambled egg or half a chefs salad? (Remember that you and your friend can agree to share portions).

8. What do you want to order? Do it now.

9. When the food comes, what do you tell yourself? Have you specified that you wanted tomato instead of potato? Have you requested dressing on the side or no bread? Is the food the way you want it to be? Rate your state of anxiety.

10. Please eat your meal or snack. Converse with your partner. Occasionally relate any thoughts or feelings that are either positive or negative. You may find yourself wanting to leave food and afraid of what the other will think. Continue to talk about how the food tastes and how you feel about eating it in front of someone else.

11. If your friend and companion is a person who never worries about food or weight, encourage him/her to share his/her thoughts and feelings with you. Compare your ideas. What have you learned?

12. At the end of the meal, review the experience. How do you feel right now? Are there any social situations coming up in the near future that you can discuss and rethink right now with your friend? How is your anxiety level now?

I hope that this experience empowers you to be more at ease with yourself and food when eating in restaurants.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gloria_Arenson

Eating disorders mainly affect teenage girls and young women throughout the world but are more prominent in countries and cultures that promote weight loss and body style. The constant bombardment and pressure to be thin leads to negative body image and unhealthy eating habits. The result is that children now between 10yrs - 15yrs are now experiencing eating disorders like anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and ED-NOS (eating disorders not otherwise specified).

These four eating disorders create negative and distorted body images due to intense emotions and behaviours surrounding food. This is more frequent in younger women who are starting to eat less as they become conscious of their body image and do not want to gain weight. Physical and emotional health issues can be extremely dangerous and at times fatal if left untreated.

Research has found that there are numerous theories surrounding the cause of eating disorders. In general combinations of social, genetic, family, psychological and environmental issues are the main attributes. The society in which the majority of us now live focuses intensely on being thinner and thinner. This does not obviously have a direct effect on what we consume but it is a major contribution to its development.

Teenage girls who participate in sports such as ballet, gymnastics, running, skating even dancing and especially modelling are more likely to develop eating disorders. They are often associated with the feeling of helplessness and sadness and the need to be perfect. This can cause the individual to use dieting or weight loss to provide a sense of order and control especially if family history of emotional problems, depression and anxiety has been apparent.

Communicating with people who have eating disorders can be very hard and challenging as they often do not think they have a problem in the first place. One of the most common things to do as a concerned person at the early stage though is the urge to give-up. This is due to your patients defensiveness and unwillingness to accept help. Do not in anyway let these reactions prevent this from happening. Continue to care and be aware that you can make an enormous difference by helping them face their illness and get the correct treatment. Often they will find it difficult to make that first call for assistance and may need close family and friends to initiate that first step.

They need to find trust in people to allow themselves to share there feelings and understand there problems. Do not expect them to immediately be positive towards your concerns. Eating disorders have shown to be challenging to overcome due to the length of time taken to rectify. By being honest and patient with one another has shown you will both make it far easier to support each other and succeed.

We must remember that eating disorders are both medical and psychological problems. Treatments are tailor made to an individuals needs but usually includes working with a therapist, a nutritionist and your local GP. Once diagnosed and with the correct medication, safe eating plan and therapy treatments significant gains can be achieved. You will begin to create weight stabilisation, a healthier diet and good positive self-image.

As a society we have to understand how we can prevent eating disorders of entering our lives and cultures. Constant teasing and harassment about body weight and style leads young women to develop eating disorders. Magazines promote airbrushed models who are naturally unrealistic. We must realise we are all different shapes and sizes and that the diet industry must stop now in trying to change our bodies into something we are not.

We must fight back against the industry that places these ideas in our heads and together we will reverse the social environment and mind-set that create eating disorders.

Thank you for taking the time to read my article and if you have found this information helpful, and would like more on various health issues, please take a look at My-Perfect-Weight.




Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Grant_Weston

Every day we look into the mirror to check our outer shell to ensure we look appropriate for the day ahead. However, various individuals look at themselves and despise what they see and try to rectify the way they look by adopting an eating disorder.

Eating disorders are harmful both to the mental and physical wellbeing of an individual and with no professional help or diagnosis the illness can go on for quite a while until the person affected by it receives any form of help.

Disorders like this can start off with a person,s mental attitude towards themselves but can often occur from an unpleasant incident that happened perhaps when they were young.

People eat, or don,t; eat in some cases, for lots of reasons and food then can be converted into either a friend or foe, and here is where the battle and life long struggle begins.

The correlation people tend to have with food can be so extreme that instead of using food for fuel-what it is intended for- individuals use it for comfort, for attention and to alleviate stress.

Some people eat when they are depressed or feeling low,and use food to reassure themselves, whilst in some cases eating little food gives a person control over how much they eat, how quick they eat it and how full they think they feel after a few mouthfuls.

These are just a few examples or suggestions as to why people become ill with food related problems, but how they tackle the situation is crucial, as relapsing can be easily done.

Hypnosis for eating disorders concentrates on the mental side of the illness and therefore works on the core problem from within. This enables the individual to understand why they have become ill with a food connected issue and helps them to determine the initial cause of the problem.

Even though an eating disorder is recognised by someone, physical appearance, mentally is where the problem begins.

Hypnotherapy is therefore working on the mind and the individual to help them battle this awful illness that has taken lives and ruined others.

Suffering in silence should not be an option when there are ways to retrain the mind and to help these people be liberated and contented.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lianne_Marett