The Eating Disorders You Don't Know About

Many people are very familiar with the two most well-known eating disorders, anorexia and bulimia. But did you know there are other eating disorders that are not as well known to the public? People, who have lived the nightmare of waking up in the middle of the night hungry, but refusing to eat, or eating enough for five grown men, but purging it all immediately afterward, can relate to all of the disorders out there that plague their suffering counterparts. But if you're not aware of other little-known disorders, including compulsive overeating, diabulimia and orthorexia nervosa, you might be surprised that they have just as much of an effect on society as the two we most know about.

The Essence of an Eating Disorder

An eating disorder is defined as "a complex compulsion to eat, or not eat, in a way which disturbs physical and mental health." Many people with eating disorders have no idea that they are suffering from a serious condition, and instead feel that are just acting in accordance with what feels right at the time. However, the obsession with food becomes chronic, eventually taking the person in its grips and relinquishing all else that once was important, including good health, family and life as a whole.

The results of long-term eating disorders are, at the very least, a health hazard, and in some cases, deadly. There have cases of people suffering from bulimia who purged so often that the acids disintegrated the gums and resulted in tooth loss. In other cases, the lack of nutrients in the body that had been either purged or avoided altogether result in a system shutdown, so to speak, with vital organs often ceasing to function.

The Disorders You Don't Know About

As mentioned before, there are some eating disorders that fall under the radar of the public eye because the others are so prevalent, but these conditions are just as serious and are still in need of treatment.

Compulsive Overeating or Binge-Eating Disorder - Many think that when you have an eating disorder, it is always related to the desire to be pencil thin. While this is a fact in many cases, the overall issue regarding an eating disorder stems from depression or a lack of self-esteem, and this can be displayed in a number of fashions. For those who suffer from a compulsive overeating, their issue may or may not be that they want to be smaller. But essentially, they have an emotional issue that is resulting in them finding comfort in the foods that they eat.

Compulsive overeaters have an addiction to food and use those foods to mask their true emotions. Unlike the more commonly-known eating disorders, sufferers of this particular disorder tend to be overweight and eating in binge cycles (like bulimia sufferers) but never purge the food. Emotional issues and low self-esteem play a large role in this disorder, but only tip the iceberg on the number of serious physical health issues that can follow. Those include: high-blood pressure, kidney disease, bone deterioration, stroke, and even heart attack.

Diabulimia - Diabulimia is probably one of the least common of all eating disorders because its origins don't affect the mass population. This disorder refers to people with Type 1 (or Juvenile Onset) Diabetes who avoid their daily insulin injections in order to lose weight. According to research, when insulin is not taken into the system, blood sugar levels raise disallowing cells to take in glucose, which essentially is removed during frequent urination. If glucose is not present, fat cannot be stored and rapid weight loss occurs.

Diabetes alone is a terribly serious condition that has life-threatening potential. Because those with Type 1 Diabetes do not produce insulin on their own, this artificial insulin is injected daily to keep the body running efficiently, and essentially avoid death. When this added element of recklessness is introduced to the equation, those suffering from diabulimia literally play a game of Rush n' Roulette with their lives.

Orthorexia Nervosa - While this eating disorder takes on a similar name to anorexia nervosa, it is quite different in that people suffering from it are fixated on a completely healthy lifestyle, resulting in them only wanting to eat what they consider to be completely healthy foods. As a result, they may avoid any foods they believe contain fats, preservatives, starches, or animal products.

While orthorexia seems not to be as dangerous as its counterpart anorexia, it does have the possibility for very damaging effects - especially for those who decide that there are no longer any healthy foods available to eat and instead choose to starve themselves until finding the right foods. Some dispute whether orthorexia can be categorized as one of the eating disorders, but whether it is truly validated or not, one cannot dispute the fact that it is a very serious condition that can result in death if not careful monitored and treated.

Treating Eating Disorders

There are two major methods of treatment when trying to help someone who is suffering from an eating disorder. First, a doctor will work with the patient to develop a normalized diet that can work to immediately set him or her on the right path health-wise. But after the technical aspects have begun, then it is time to focus on the emotional factors that brought the patient to the point using food as an accomplice or enemy in the first place.

Treatment for any eating disorder can include nutritional counseling, plenty of medical supervision, and intense therapy sessions. In severe cases, the patient may have to be hospitalized to stabilize, and in the most serious cases, narrowly escape death. The level of treatment depends on how deeply the patient was suffering from their condition when first treated. But no matter the level of seriousness, any patient can be treated and brought to full recovery if caught in time.

Eating disorders are like any other serious addiction. It is important to closely monitor any loved one whose behavior abruptly changes, especially if this change is accompanied by sharp attitude and physical appearance adjustments. Communicating with loved ones and constantly affirming your love for them help to greatly boost self-esteem. And in turn, you may be helping someone to avoid, or possibly reverse, the potential for them to succumb to one of the many dangerous eating disorders plaguing our society today.

Jeffrey Meier at Jam727 Enterprises at http://www.thearticlehome.com blog offers even more detailed information on a wide variety of topics.

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