Society's emphasis on the thin ideal, fad diets and pressure to be perfect make many men and women uncomfortable with how they look. The South Carolina Department of Mental Health estimates that 7 million women and 1 million men suffer from an eating disorder, and nearly half of all Americans know someone with this often debilitating mental disorder. Eating disorders can become life threatening, but treatment can help people with eating disorders recover.
Body Mass Index
Body mass index, or BMI, is used to measure a person's body weight based on his height. It's used to determine whether or not a person is overweight, in a healthy weight range or underweight. To calculate BMI, a person's weight measured in kilograms is divided by the height in meters squared. A person with a BMI of 18.5 or less is considered underweight. A person with a BMI of 18.5 to 25 is considered normal. A BMI reading higher than 25 is an indication of being overweight. People with a BMI over 30 are considered obese.
Eating Disorders
Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorders are serious eating disorders. Women are more likely to have eating disorders than men, but more men are being diagnosed with the disorder. A person with anorexia nervosa restricts her food intake, and despite looking dangerously thin may still perceive herself as fat. A person with bulimia nervosa has periods of binging, in which she consumes a large number of calories in a short amount of time, followed by purging. Purging methods include self-induced vomiting, laxative abuse, diuretic abuse and excessive exercising. A person with binge-eating disorder engages in out-of-control eating but does not purge. The disorders can overlap. Some people with anorexia engage in purging without binges, and many people with bulimia go through periods of restricting.
Weight Loss
Some women and men with eating disorders experience dramatic weight loss. A BMI under 18.5 is considered underweight, and although some men and women are naturally thin, a low BMI could be a indication of an eating disorder. The diagnostic criteria for anorexia states that weight loss must lead to a maintenance of body weight less than 85 percent of what is expected.
Consequences
A low BMI, low body fat composition and low weight can have consequences. When a person with an eating disorder restricts or purges every time she eats, malnutrition results. Restricting and purging cause electrolyte imbalances. Sodium and potassium can become dangerously low and cause heart irregularities and cardiac arrest. Low calcium can lead to osteoporosis. Kidney problems can result from dehydration. Other symptoms and complications include low body temperature, constipation, brittle nails, brittle hair, anemia, fatigue, low heart rate and low blood pressure. Severe eating disorders can result in death. Eating disorders have the highest rate of all mental health disorders. The South Carolina Department of Mental Health estimates that 5 percent to 10 percent of people with an eating disorder die within 10 years of onset of the disorder and 18 percent to 20 percent die after 20 years.
Misconceptions
A person suffering from an eating disorder doesn't have to appear underweight. Many men and women with severe eating disorders are at an average weight or overweight. These people are in just as much danger from malnutrition as people who exhibit dramatic weight loss.
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