Eating disorders include numerous conditions that manifest themselves through alterations in eating behavior with negative consequences for the person’s health and functioning in different areas of their life, such as family or work. The alterations caused by eating disorders can be very serious.
Our society, along with psychological and genetic factors, influence its appearance at any age, although adolescence is a risk stage. In this Psychology-Online article, we are going to explain the Types of eating disorders and their characteristics. Discover what this type of disorder consists of, when it starts and how to recognize it.
Eating disorders are eating behavior disorders associated with physical complications and mortality. The mortality rate from eating disorders is one of the highest among psychiatric disorders.
Eating disorders can occur in both men and women. Currently there 4 types of eating disorders recognized by the DSM Diagnostic Manual: , , binge eating disorder and eating disorders not otherwise specified.
People may move between diagnoses if their symptoms change, as there is some overlap between some disorders. The objective of the diagnosis is for the person to follow the most appropriate treatment for their case.
Symptoms of eating disorders
This alteration can manifest itself in several ways. Let’s see the most common symptoms of eating disorders:
- Imitate the amount of food eaten.
- Eating large amounts of food at a time.
- Eliminate foods ingested through unhealthy means: such as purging, laxatives, fasting, excessive exercise, etc.
- A combination of the above behaviors.
In many cases, the eating disorder is accompanied by depression, anxiety, or substance abuse.
Adolescence is a risk stage for eating disorders, but They can appear at any age. In many cases, there is a period of time from when the disorder begins until treatment begins, which negatively affects the duration of the eating disorder and the results of said treatment.
How long do eating disorders last?
Studies show that the early detection and intervention They can greatly reduce the duration and severity of the eating disorder. Therefore, it is very important to seek professional help as soon as possible, since with proper treatment, complete recovery is possible. Research indicates that The sooner a treatment is started, the shorter it will be. the recovery period.
Seeking help at the first warning sign is much more effective than waiting for the disorder to fully manifest itself.
What types of eating disorders are there? There are different types of eating disorders. Next, we will see which are the most common and their characteristics.
anorexia nervosa
One of the best-known eating disorders is anorexia nervosa. The symptoms of this disorder are:
- Persistent restriction of food intake: A person with anorexia nervosa is not able to maintain a healthy weight and may lose a large amount of weight in a short period of time.
- Intense fear of gaining weight: Even if the person is underweight, malnourished, or hungry, the person still has an intense fear of gaining weight or being overweight.
- Body image distortion: A person with anorexia nervosa directs much of their attention to their body and body image. A person’s self-esteem can be completely defined by their physical appearance or by how they believe others see them. In addition, he may develop a distorted view of his body, seeing himself as overweight when in reality he is underweight.
Anorexia nervosa is one of the eating disorders that can become a way of controlling areas of life that the person feels are out of their control. The body image can define your self-esteem. It can also be a way to express emotions that may seem too complex or scary, such as pain, stress or anxiety. In these situations, we mend this article about .
The reasons why anorexia nervosa manifests vary from person to person. Among the most common causes are genetic predisposition and a combination of environmental, social and cultural factors. Restrictive diets and excessive physical exercise can also be risk factors for the onset of anorexia.
Bulimia nervosa
One of the types of eating disorders that is characterized by episodes of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviors. In addition, they place excessive emphasis on their body image and weight, which means that their self-esteem can be defined entirely by these aspects. Some of the known causes include genetic predisposition and a combination of environmental, social and cultural factors.
Binge eating episodes present different symptoms. Let’s see the main characteristics of this eating disorder:
- Eating a large amount of food in a relatively short period of time, for example, 2 hours.
- Feeling of loss of control of intake: the person is not able to stop eating.
- The compensatory behaviors They are used as a way to try to control weight after binge eating.
- Vomiting.
- Use of laxatives or diuretics
- Excessive physical exercise.
- Use of any drug inappropriately to control weight, that is, the use is not indicated or prescribed.
- Fast.
A person with bulimia may feel lost in that cycle of binge eating and compensation, feeling shame, guilt, etc. Furthermore, these behaviors can become compulsive and uncontrollable over time and lead to an obsession with food, weight loss, diets, etc. People with bulimia often experience fluctuations in weight and may not lose it or may remain in the healthy weight range.
In this article, we tell you the main ones.
Binge eating disorder
Another type of eating disorder is binge eating disorder. This is characterized by frequent episodes of binge eating in which the person has a loss of control over food intake and can’t stop eating despite wanting to.
Regarding the characteristics of eating disorders, the most common of binge eating disorder are:
- Identifiable eating habits: like eating very quickly, eating when they are not hungry, and continuing to do so even when they are full to the point of feeling sick.
- Feelings of guilt and shame.
- They usually occur in periods of high stresswhen the person is angry, bored, etc.
- It is used as a way to deal with certain situations or emotions.
Unlike a person with bulimia nervosa, a person with binge eating disorder does not use compensatory behaviors. Many people with binge eating disorder are overweight or obese. Known causes include genetic factors, a combination of environmental, social and cultural factors. In this article you will find more information about it.
Unspecified eating disorders
Finally, if we talk about types of eating disorders, it is also important to mention unspecified eating disorders. The people who suffer from them may give some of the symptoms described above of anorexia, bulimia or binge eating disorder, but who do not meet the criteria for the diagnosis of those specific disorders.