Why Do People Develop Eating Disorders?

Eating disorders are psychological problems connected to eating habits. People with eating disorders have impaired eating behavior and distorted beliefs about nutrition. The most common is extreme concern about one's weight, body shape, and food.

Eating disorders can cause comorbid health conditions like obesity, dystrophy, cardiovascular and hormonal problems, and other diet-related diseases. They are treated by a psychiatrist only. Even a top bariatric surgeon won’t help if the problem is in the mind, not in the stomach.

The Types of Eating Disorders

There are several types of eating disorders - from unconscious consumption of products to their complete avoidance.

- Taste addiction focuses on the need for a certain product and its taste. This is especially true of food with tryptophan (an amino acid precursor of serotonin) like chocolate and bananas, or one that has a tangible effect on the body, like coffee. Pleasant sensations from the taste distract from the negative emotions, relieve boredom or fill a pause in some activity - like cigarettes for smokers.

- Compulsive overeating is the consumption of a large amount of food in a short period of time. A person is not able to control its volume, which causes obesity. This condition is most often caused by stress or decreased mood and self-esteem.

- Another type of eating disorder is anorexia nervosa, that is, the voluntary rejection of certain foods or the complete rejection of food in an effort to lose weight. This can lead to disturbances in the psycho-emotional sphere, dystrophy and other psychiatric and physiological problems.

- With anorexia, the perception of one's own body is disturbed - it seems obese even with insufficient weight. In the first stage, a person is still able to rebuild a healthy relationship with food or get the support of loved ones and a psychologist, but later, medications may be necessary to restore physical and psychological health.

- The opposite of anorexia is bulimia - overeating with further "self-cleansing". It is characterized by outbreaks of hunger and excessive absorption of food, while not the choice of products, but their amount is important. The next stage after severe overeating is the induction of vomiting or the use of medications with a laxative effect, as a person is driven by the fear of obesity. They lose control over eating and experience a terrible feeling of hunger up to pain and spasms of the esophagus.

What Causes EDs?

Food addiction refers to the emotional cycle of addictions - a person replenishes emotions with the help of a certain behavior or activity. Biological factors, such as changes in hormonal levels and metabolism, can provoke an incorrect attitude towards food and require medical intervention. In such cases, diets can be dangerous, as they exacerbate the disease.

However, the main causes of food addiction are formed in early childhood and result from family problems. With food, some make up for the lack of love, recognition, attention to themselves, support; eating food is their way of resisting negative emotions and fears. The belief that food is the main and safest source of pleasure is gradually taking root. With eating disorders, food becomes a way of communication and loses its primary functions, and relationships with food reflect relationships with the world.

How Can I Recognize the Symptoms of an Eating Disorder?

Anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder have different symptoms, but some of them may overlap. Answer the following questions to check if you have one.

- Have you ever experienced the feeling of losing control while eating?

- Do you feel guilty, ashamed, or sad about your food habits?

- Do you sometimes eat a large amount of food in a short period of time?

- Do you feel the need to over-exercise, take laxatives, induce vomiting, or use other means to lose weight?

- Do you find it difficult to cope with feelings related to food or your body?

- How often are you preoccupied with thoughts about food, do you look forward to a second meal?

- Do you think about what you should eat, about the calorie content of food and its amount?

- Do you have constant anxiety about your appearance, obsessive thoughts about being overweight, a desire to lose weight or a fear of getting fat?

- Is your level of self-esteem related to weight and body shape?

If the answer to one or more questions is yes, you may have an eating disorder.

Who Is at Risk for EDs?

Eating disorders in children may appear due to the poor diet habits in the family - along with their parents, they gain excess weight and adopt the improper diet culture. The disorder is also typical for victims of violence. For example, for young mothers who, after their husband's humiliating comments about excess weight, abruptly go on a diet and in case of failure earn bulimia. Adults in a chronically difficult situation are also at risk: many workers from stressful areas often gain excess weight in order to stabilize their psycho-emotional state.

Eating disorders affect people with low self-esteem who are highly dependent on the opinions of others. They are sensitive to information spreaded by mass media and try to be like models and actresses. It seems to many that if the appearance, the weight in particular, changes, life will become easier.

When and Where to Seek Help?

As soon as you notice health problems, you need to contact a psychiatrist or psychotherapist who will diagnose you and prescribe treatment. The doctor should be a certified specialist in psychiatry, ideally in treating EDs.