Welcome to Recovery-World Eating Disorders!
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Eating disorders are characterized by a preoccupation with
weight that results in severe disturbances in eating and other behaviors. These
disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder.
Anorexia
nervosa. Essentially self-starvation, this disorder involves
a refusal to maintain a minimally normal body weight. In severe cases, anorexia
can be life-threatening.
Bulimia nervosa. This involves repeated episodes
of binge eating, followed by ways of trying to purge the body of the food
or of expected weight gain. People can have this condition and be of normal
weight.
Binge eating disorder. This is characterized by frequent episodes
of overeating without purging.
Other variations of eating disorders occur,
such as purging without bingeing, chewing and spitting without purging, and
anorexic behavior with less severe weight loss.
Most Americans with
eating disorders are females between the ages of 12 and 25. Males can develop eating
disorders, but generally less frequently. The exception is binge eating disorder,
which appears to affect almost as many males as females.
Treatments
for eating disorders may involve nutrition education, psychotherapy, family
counseling and medications.
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