Eating disorders refer to disturbances in eating patterns and distressing thoughts about body weight and image. Individuals suffering from an eating disorder have a distorted image of their body shape and appearance. These conditions are a result of low-self esteem, psychological problems, a poor social environment, and unhealthy relationships. As the disorder progresses, it can become a potentially life-threatening illness. These disorders can be cured if diagnosed in time but require a lot of mental, emotional, and medical support even after the immediate risk has passed.

Eating disorders can be generally classified into three types:

  • Anorexia nervosa
  • Bulimia nervosa
  • Binge eating disorder

Anorexia nervosa
Anorexia nervosa or simply anorexia is an eating disorder wherein people restrict themselves from eating or purge their food after eating. People with this condition typically have extremely low body weight which is disproportionate to their height and body type.

Anorexia is dubbed as a lifestyle disorder. People suffering from it are in constant fear of gaining weight; often believing that they are heavy, when in fact they might be underweight already. These people are generally extremely thin as they subject themselves to constant starvation or claim to not have an appetite at all.

Anorexia can be classified into two major types based on the ways adopted by the patients to stay thin:

  • Anorexia with bingeing/purging
    People suffering from anorexia will purge after eating to get rid of the guilt of having eaten too much and also out of fear of gaining weight. Abusing laxatives, forced vomiting, and over exercising are some of the methods people follow to lose weight.
  • Anorexia with restriction
    People suffering from this type of disorder seem highly disciplined and strictly avoid high-calorie foods. They deprive themselves of food that is required for the body to grow and remain healthy and active; believing it makes them unhealthy.

Bulimia nervosa
Unlike anorexia nervosa, people suffering from bulimia nervosa are not always underweight. They may be slightly underweight, normal weight, overweight or obese despite vigorous dieting and exercising. These individuals binge-eat frequently. They eat large quantities rapidly and tend to swallow food without realizing they are full. Individuals suffering from bulimia are stuck in a vicious cycle of feeling guilty about themselves— resorting to binge-eating— feeling even guilter— binge-eating again.

They stop eating only when their stomach starts hurting or when they are interrupted by another person. Having consumed calorie-rich foods that are high in sugars, carbohydrates, and fats, the guilt of weight gain will prompt them to purge with the help of laxatives or vomiting. Severe bulimia sufferers may purge several times a day and face problems like gastrointestinal problems, severe dehydration, and heart conditions.

Binge eating disorder
Individuals having binge-eating disorders eat large quantities of food in a very short period of time. Binge-eating is uncontrolled. Unlike in bulimia, the binge-eaters do not purge after a heavy meal. These people are usually overweight and obese and are susceptible to many severe health conditions like obesity, hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Negative emotions like disgust drive individuals to take to eating food continually to cope with such emotions. Hence this becomes a vicious cycle. Binge eating at least twice a week over a period of six months can be classified as the binge eating disorder.