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Feature Articles: Eating Disorders
When Dieting Becomes DangerousTammy Roberts, MS, RD, LD, Nutrition and
Health Education Specialist in Barton County |
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Many people make plans to go on diets to get rid of unwanted
extra weight. For some, what starts out as a desire to shed a
few pounds turns into an eating disorder.
According to the Eating Disorder Sourcebook by Carolyn Costin,
dieting is a risk factor for developing an eating disorder. Boys
and men can be diagnosed with an eating disorder but 95-97% of
all cases are female patients.
Eating disorders are complex conditions that are thought to
be a symptom of another issue such as low self-esteem, feelings
of inadequacy, or lack of control. The disordered eating is a
way of nurturing or protecting oneself. People with eating
disorders turn to food or eating rituals to meet their emotional
needs. The eating behavior that they adopt becomes necessary for
the person to continue to feel whole. Our society provides
positive feedback for weight loss. It is unfortunate that
positive feedback is reinforcing unhealthy behaviors that lead
to eating disorders.
There may be other causes of eating disorders. Research is
being done on possible biochemical or biological causes.
Medication has helped some people but has not proven to be the
answer for others. In some cases it is thought that the chemical
disturbance is caused by the eating disorder rather than a cause
of the disorder. Nutritional deficiencies are also associated
with eating disorders both as a cause and effect. Research
continues in this area.
Interpersonal and social factors can contribute to eating
disorders. According to the National Eating Disorders
Association, interpersonal factors can include troubled family
and personal relationships, difficulty expressing emotions and
feelings, history of being teased about size or weight, or
history of abuse. Social factors include cultural pressures of
being thin. Our society tends to idolize the tall thin “model”
body for women but only 2% of the population is actually built
that way. Another social factor is that our culture often values
people based on physical appearance rather than other qualities.
According to the Eating Disorder Sourcebook people who recover from eating disorders attribute their success to having the loving support of friends and family as the crucial factor. Knowing that someone loved and cared for them and would not give up on them provided the incentive to overcome the illness. If you know someone who is struggling with food issues, it is advisable to get help from a medical professional.
Last update: Monday, August 14, 2006
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