Eating Disorders

Eating Disorders
Teenage girls are the most susceptible to eating disorders. Because we are at that point in our live where we’re trying to figure out where we belong and who we are. We are testing our limits experiencing new found freedom. Forming friendships and essentially just growing up. Our adolescent years are rough. They can be confusing, stressful, emotion hurricanes. At times we may feel like we have no control over our own lives. Someone is always telling us do this do that. Or you can’t do this or that. And often times we turn to food for comfort or we find control in our lives through food. It helps us deal with pain or fear and any other emotions we are juggling.
There are three types of eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and EDNOS (Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified).
Anorexia Nervosa is a condition where people do not eat enough to keep their body’s functioning sufficiently. They become weak and unhealthy, because they lose weight at an unnatural, unhealthy speed. People who are anorexic have emotional and psychological issues, such as depression, or anxiety. Some anorexic people us pills or drink caffeine that gives the ma false sense of energy and make them feel anxious and nervous. Other symptoms of anorexia include: dizziness, faint spells, heart problems, brittle hair and fingernails, loss of head hair, dry skin, dehydration, and lanugo. (Lanugo is a growth of soft fury hair on face, arms, and back.)
People with bulimia nervosa binge eat even when they are not hungry. They consume extremely large amounts of food in one sitting. Then after binging they get rid of the food by exercising or vomiting. They may eat privately to hide their eating habits, because they are ashamed or embarrassed. Bulimia causes dehydration, sore throat, tooth decay, flaky skin, upset stomach, heartburn, depression, and it can cause your face to swell, vomiting cause also low potassium which can lead to serious heart arrhythmias and even death.
Another type of eating disorder is ENDOS, which is a disorder where you have some symptoms of anorexia and bulimia but not all of them. Someone with ENDOS may have periods where they binge eat or time when they eat little or nothing at all for days at a time.
If you are worried that you or someone you know may have an eating disorder tell an adult or get help from a health care provider. Here are some additional tip for staying healthy and have a healthy mind set. I got these tips of the website www.youngwomenshealth.org.
• Identify and respect everything about yourself inside and out.
• Be yourself-try not to compare yourself to others especially models in magazines
• Abstain from talking about weight, calories, and food
• Try to make eating a positive experience: food is fuel for your body and your mind
• DO NOT diet eat, healthy foods
• Work on ways to cope with negative feelings in a healthy manner, like talking to friends or family members, listening to music, or doing crafts. Practice ways to deal with stress and avoid using food to deal with emotions.