A diet disorder, or eating disorder, involves severe disruptions in normal eating behavior. Generally, eating disorders begin with a small change in eating behavior and then gradually develop into a large problem. According to The National Institute of Mental Health, eating disorders affect women more often than men and usually develop during adolescence. There are three major types of eating disorders.
Anorexia Nervosa
Anorexia nervosa involves an obsession with weight and food. People with anorexia nervosa often view themselves as overweight even when they are well under normal weight for their height. This leads to severe food restriction, often accompanied by excessive exercise. According to MayoClinic.com, anorexia nervosa usually develops as a way to cope with underlying emotional problems.
Anorexia nervosa involves a variety of physical, emotional and behavioral problems. Physical symptoms of anorexia nervosa include thin hair, brittle nails, bluish tint to the skin, constipation, dry skin, low blood pressure and a layer of hair covering the body. Emotional and behavioral symptoms include starvation, denial, lack of emotion, withdrawal from social activity, irritability, depression and obsession with food.
Bulimia Nervosa
Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by episodes of binging and purging. Binging involves eating an abnormally large volume of food, usually high-carbohydrate foods such as pasta, chips or cereal. Purging episodes may be characterized by vomiting, laxative abuse or over-exercising. People with bulimia nervosa usually experience a fluctuating body weight as well as loss of tooth enamel, bad breath, constipation, diarrhea, nausea, gas, dehydration and sore throat. Episodes of binging and purging are often accompanied by feelings of guilt, shame and depression.
Binge-Eating Disorder
According to the Weight-Control Information Network, a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, binge-eating disorder is the most common eating disorder, affecting 3 percent of adults in the United States. Although people of any age may have binge-eating disorder, it usually affects adults between the ages of 46 and 55.
Binge-eating disorder involves eating an unusually large volume of food during a single sitting. In addition to overeating, people with binge-eating disorder also experience a sense of loss of control. Binge-eating episodes are usually accompanied by guilt and shame and are done alone, due to embarrassment. Unlike bulimia nervosa, binge-eating disorder does not involve purging after episodes of overeating. Because of this, people with binge-eating disorder are often obese or severely overweight.
Considerations
It is not clear what causes the development of diet disorders. Most researchers agree that it is a combination of genetics and environment, although there is no sure way to determine who will develop an eating disorder and who will not.
Those who do develop eating disorders usually require long-term treatment. Treatment plans usually consist of outpatient therapy and nutritional support. If the affected individual is resistant to treatment, hospitalization may be necessary.
