It is sometimes hard not to be overly critical of our bodies. Constant subliminal pressures from the media through mediums like television, movies and the internet make it hard for one to avoid the clutter of unhealthy messages. But at what cost are these messages penetrating the mind of millions of women and men alike?
Mental disorders are the leading cause of disability in both the US and Canada and eating disorders are part of the list. Eating disorders can be categorized in three sections:
Bulimia – characterized by recurrent binge eating, followed by compensatory behaviors such as vomiting or laxatives.
Anorexia – characterized by refusal to maintain a healthybody weight, and an obsessive fear of gaining weight due to a distorted self image.
Binge Eating – characterized by of episodes of uncontrollable eating.
Keep in mind that you can suffer from more than one of these and that eating disorders can affect you at any time in your life. However, it is most likely to affect you in your youth and can be accompaniedby other mental disorders such as obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and depression.
Sometimes having an eating disorder can lead youto using drugs as a means of controlling your weight. Heavy drug use accompanied by bad nutrition can have serious short and long term health effects including fatigue, anemia (lack of iron) and depression just to name afew. As well, there is the possibility that it can lead to addiction in orderto control the desired body weight.
The good news is that there is lots of help available! The first step is wanting to be healthy and gain control of your life again. For more info check out:
Treatment options are available here, as well asthrough a trusted doctor.