myths about eating disorders...

Just thought this might help to clear up some things...





Eating disorders are not an illness

Eating disorders are a complex medical/psychiatric illness.

Eating disorders are classified as a mental illness in the American

Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of

Mental Health Disorders (DSM-IV), are considered to often have

a biologic basis, and co-occur with other mental illness such as

major depression, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive disorder



Anorexia nervosa is the only serious

eating disorder

All eating disorders can have damaging physical and psychological

consequences. Although excess weight loss is a feature

of anorexia nervosa, effects of other eating disorders can also

be serious or life threatening, such as the electrolyte imbalance

associated with purging.





Eating disorders are uncommon

They are common. Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and

binge-eating disorder are on the rise in the United States and

worldwide. Among U.S. females in their teens and 20s, the prevalence

of clinical and subclinical anorexia may be as high as 15%.

Anorexia nervosa ranks as the 3rd most common chronic illness

among adolescent U.S. females. Recent studies suggest that up to

7% of U.S. females have had bulimia at some time in their lives.

At any given time an estimated 5% of the U.S. population has

undiagnosed bulimia. Current findings suggest that binge-eating

disorder affects 0.7% to 4% of the general population.





A person cannot die from bulimia

While the rate of death from bulimia nervosa is much lower than

that seen with anorexia nervosa, a person with bulimia can be at

high risk for death and sudden death because of purging and its

impact on the heart and electrolyte imbalances. Laxative use and

excessive exercise can increase risk of death in individuals who are

actively bulimic.





Eating disorders are a choice

People do not choose to have eating disorders. They develop over

time and require appropriate treatment to address the complex

medical/psychiatric symptoms and underlying issues.







Subclinical eating disorders are not serious

Although a person may not fulfill the diagnostic criteria for an

eating disorder, the consequences associated with disordered

eating (e.g., frequent vomiting, excessive exercise, anxiety) can

have long-term consequences and requires intervention. Early

intervention may also prevent progression to a full-blown clinical

eating disorder.





Eating disorders occur only in females

Eating disorders occur in males. Few solid statistics are available

on the prevalence of eating disorders in males, but the disorders

are believed to be more common than currently reflected in

statistics because of under-diagnosis. An estimated one-fourth

of anorexia diagnoses in children are in males. The National

Collegiate Athletic Association carried out studies on the incidence

of eating-disordered behavior among athletes in the 1990s,

and reported that of those athletes who reported having an eating

disorder, 7% were male. For binge-eating disorder, preliminary

research suggests equal prevalence among males and females.

Incidence in males may be underreported because females are

more likely to seek help, and health practitioners are more likely

to consider an eating disorder diagnosis in females. Differences

in symptoms exist between males and females: females are more

likely to focus on weight loss; males are more likely to focus on

muscle mass. Although issues such as altering diet to increase

muscle mass, over-exercise, or steroid misuse are not yet criteria

for eating disorders, a growing body of research indicates that

these factors are associated with many, but not all, males with

eating disorders.





Dieting is normal adolescent behavior

While fad dieting or body image concerns have become “normal”

features of adolescent life in Western cultures, dieting or frequent

and/or extreme dieting can be a risk factor for developing an

eating disorder. It is especially a risk factor for young people with

family histories of eating disorders and depression, anxiety, or

obsessive-compulsive disorder. A focus on health, wellbeing, and

healthy body image and acceptance is preferable. Any dieting

should be monitored.







Anorexia is “dieting gone bad”

Anorexia has nothing to do with dieting. It is a life-threatening

medical/psychiatric disorder.



Men who suffer from eating disorders

tend to be gay

Sexual preference has no correlation with developing an

eating disorder.







A person with anorexia never eats at all

Most anorexics do eat; however, they tend to eat smaller

portions, low-calorie foods, or strange food combinations.

Some may eat candy bars in the morning and nothing else

all day. Others may eat lettuce and mustard every 2 hours or

only condiments. The disordered eating behaviors are very

individualized. Total cessation of all food intake is rare and

would result in death from malnutrition in a matter of weeks.





You can tell if a person has an eating disorder

simply by appearance

You can’t. Anorexia may be easier to detect visually, although

individuals may wear loose clothing to conceal their body.

Bulimia is harder to “see” because individuals often have normal

weight or may even be overweight. Some people may have

obvious signs, such as sudden weight loss or gain; others may

not. People with an eating disorder can become very effective at

hiding the signs and symptoms. Thus, eating disorders can be

undetected for months, years, or a lifetime.



Eating disorders are about appearance

and beauty

Eating disorders are a mental illness and have little to do with

food, eating, appearance, or beauty. This is indicated by the

continuation of the illness long after a person has reached his or

her initial ‘target’ weight. Eating disorders are usually related to

emotional issues such as control and low self-esteem and often

exist as part of a “dual” diagnosis of major depression, anxiety, or

obsessive-compulsive disorder

.

Eating disorders are caused by unhealthy

and unrealistic images in the media

While sociocultural factors (such as the ‘thin ideal’) can

contribute or trigger development of eating disorders, research

has shown that the causes are multifactorial and include biologic,

social, and environmental contributors. Not everyone who is

exposed to media images of thin “ideal” body images develops

an eating disorder. Eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa

have been documented in the medical literature since the 1800s,

when social concepts of an ideal body shape for women and

men differed significantly from today—long before mass media

promoted thin body images for women or lean muscular body

images for men.



Only people of high socioeconomic status

get eating disorders

People in all socioeconomic levels have eating disorders. The

disorders have been identified across all socioeconomic groups,

age groups, both sexes, and in many countries in Europe, Asia,

Africa, and North and South America.



Recovery from eating disorders is rare

Recovery can take months or years, but many people eventually

recover after treatment. Recovery rates vary widely among

individuals and the different eating disorders. Early intervention

with appropriate care can improve the outcome regardless

of the eating disorder. Although anorexia nervosa is associated

with the highest death rate of all psychiatric disorders, research

suggests that about half of people with anorexia nervosa recover,

about 20% continue to experience issues with food, and about

20% die in the longer term due to medical or psychological

complications.



Eating disorders are an attempt

to seek attention

The causes of eating disorders are complex and typically include

socio economic, environmental, cultural, and biologic factors.

People who experience eating disorders often go to great lengths

to conceal it due to feelings of shame or a desire to persist in

behavior perceived to afford the sufferer control in life. Eating

disorders are often symptomatic of deeper psychological issues

such as low self esteem and the desire to feel in control. The

behaviors associated with eating disorders may sometimes be

interpreted as ‘attention seeking”; however, they indicate that the

affected person has very serious struggles and needs help.



Purging is only throwing up

The definition of purging is to evacuate the contents of the

stomach or bowels by any of several means. In bulimia, purging

is used to compensate for excessive food intake. Methods of

purging include vomiting, enemas and laxative abuse, insulin

abuse, fasting, and excessive exercise. Any of these behaviors can

be dangerous and lead to a serious medical emergency or death.

Purging by throwing up also can affect the teeth and esophagus

because of the acidity of purged contents.



Purging will help lose weight

Purging does not result in ridding the body of ingested food.

Half of what is consumed during a binge typically remains in

the body after self-induced vomiting. Laxatives result in weight

loss through fluids/water and the effect is temporary. For these

reasons, many people with bulimia are average or above-average

weight.



You’re not sick until you’re emaciated

Only a small percentage of people with eating disorders reach the

state of emaciation often portrayed in the media. The common

belief that a person is only truly ill if he or she becomes abnormally

thin compounds the affected individuals’ perceptions of

body image and not being “good” at being “sick enough.” This

can interfere with seeking treatment and can trigger intensification

of self-destructive eating disorder behaviors.





Kids under age 15 are too young to

have an eating disorder

Eating disorders have been diagnosed in children as young as

seven or eight years of age. Often the precursor behaviors are not

recognized until middle to late teens. The average age at onset

for anorexia nervosa is 17 years; the disorder rarely begins before

puberty. Bulimia nervosa is usually diagnosed in mid-to-late

teens or early 20s, although some people do not seek treatment

until even later in life (30s or 40s).



You can’t suffer from more than one

eating disorder

Individuals often suffer from more than one eating disorder at a

time. Bulimarexia is a term that was coined to describe individuals

who go back and forth between bulimia and anorexia.

Bulimia and anorexia can occur independently of each other,

although about half of all anorexics become bulimic.



Achieving normal weight means the

anorexia is cured

Weight recovery is essential to enabling a person with anorexia to

participate meaningfully in further treatment, such as psychological

therapy. Recovering to normal weight does not in and

of itself signify a cure, because eating disorders are complex

medical/psychiatric illnesses.



Credit: NEDA