Eating Disorders

 Fact or Fiction?  Eating Disorders only affect Females.  Eating Disorders can be life threatening.

Eating Disorders  Mental disorder that reveals itself through abnormal behaviors related to food  More than just food  Emotions, thoughts, and attitudes  What types of eating disorders have you heard about?  Anorexia Nervosa  Bulimia  Binge Eating Disorder

Anorexia Nervosa  Can be a source of anxiety  Does not eat enough food to maintain a healthy body weight  Normal appetite & hunger pains  Symptoms  Extreme weight loss  Slowed heart and breathing rates  Dry skin  Fine body hair  Loss of menstrual period  90% of all cases are female

Anorexia Nervosa  Health Risks-Addiction  See themselves as fat  Work harder to lose weight  Excessive exercise or diet  Lack of essential minerals causes heart to suddenly stop

Anorexia Nervosa  Possible Causes  Usually a good student  Lack of a certain chemical that regulates mood  Low self-esteem  Troubled relationships  A person with a parent or sibling with an eating disorder are far likelier to develop one themselves

Anorexia Nervosa  Treatment  First treated in hospitals  Doctors, nurses, and dietitians  Stop weight loss and change eating habits  Mental health experts  Correct emotional problems  Family help

Anorexia Nervosa  Anorexia literally means “lack of appetite.” Why is that a misconception of those with the disorder?  Discuss diet with friends or secretive?  Excited to share weight loss or try to hide it?  Goal for losing weight?  They have normal appetite and hunger, they just choose not to give in.  Talk to a trusted adult if worried

Bulimia  Go on uncontrolled eating binges followed by purging, or removing, the food from their bodies  Vomiting  Usually 2 times a week for 3 months to be bulimia  Laxatives  90 to 95% of cases are female  Too much food too quickly  Bathroom visits right after eating

Bulimia What’s wrong with this picture?

Bulimia  Health Risks  Maintain normal body weight  Dehydration causing kidney damage  Lack of vitamins and minerals  Stomach acid  Inflames or causes tears in the throat  Erodes teeth enamel  Depression and suicide  Vomiting can decrease heart rate which weakens the heart causing failure

Bulimia  Possible Causes  Use food to feel better emotionally (relieve feelings of depression) then purge in order to not gain weight  Low self-esteem  Troubled relationships

Bulimia  Treatments  Aware but unable to control behavior  Too ashamed to seek help  Offer private support  Encourage to seek help from mental-health expert  Psychotherapy, antidepressants, and nutritional counseling

Eating Disorders  Can someone with an eating disorder be an athlete (or compete in sports)?  Can a high level athlete have or develop an eating disorder?

Female Triad  Some sports have certain weight restrictions causing athletes to starve to make weight  Female triad  Lose weight to increase performance (eating disorder)  Exercise so much and not eat enough that period is stopped  Osteoporosis is a weakening of the bones due to the loss of bone density and improper bone formation.

Binge Eating Disorder  Regularly have an uncontrollable urge to eat large amounts of food  Don’t purge but binge  Can’t stop eating once full  Intention to eat 2 slices of bread and end up eating the whole loaf  Used for coping with stress, depression, or anxiety

Binge Eating Disorder  Health Risks  Excess weight gain  Unhealthy diet  Diabetes  High blood pressure  Try extreme weight loss diets  Hunger causes more bingeing  Yo-yo effect

Binge Eating Disorder  Possible Causes  Never properly learned how to deal with stress  Avoid dealing with emotions or stressful situations  Food provides temporary relief but can lead to guilt or depression  Family that tends to overeat  Treatment  Eat more slowly and deliberately  Address underlying emotional problems

Binge Eating or not? Tell my why.

Learning Log  Alexis is 15. At 5’4” tall and 125 pounds, she looks in the mirror and sees a fat person. At dinner, she has started telling her parents, “I’m not hungry – I’ll eat later.” But Alexis doesn’t eat later because she has begun to starve herself in secret. For the past week, she’s been eating about 400 calories per day.  Justin is a wrestler – the best in his weight class. But he needs to stay in that weight class. If he gains just 2 pounds, he’ll get bumped up a class and have to wrestle larger guys and possibly lose. Justin exercises obsessively. He also takes laxatives to lose weight, and he has thrown up once or twice after friends dragged him out for fast food. Justin even stops drinking water a day before he gets weighed for a match.  Emma is so fit and healthy, she doesn’t even get her period anymore – or at least, that’s how Emma sees it. As a top high school athlete, she trains all the time. Without the knowledge of her parents or coach, she has also dropped her intake to 800 calories per day. If she goes over, she makes herself throw up.