Eating Disorders
Cause and Effect – Eating Disorders
Eating disorders are becoming an increasingly common issue in North American society. There are three general types of eating disorders anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and binge eating. It is a shocking fact that girls at the young age of 13 are attempting to lose weight. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. In anorexia alone 20 percent of people will prematurely die from problems related to their disorder, for example, heart disease and suicide. There are many causes of eating disorders, some of which are social pressures, psychological factors, and interpersonal factors. In North American society the ideal body image portrayed by the media for women is tall and very thin and for men it is tall and muscular. Being overweight, or having any visible fat on the body is looked down upon. A gross amount of value is placed on having the “perfect body,” portrayed on television, movies, and magazines which, “[creates] a pervasive dissatisfaction in women about their bodies”(Eating Disorders Help Guide). This has a direct effect on why both women and men develop eating disorders. Both women and men strive to achieve the ideal body image. Depriving your body of food, or force vomiting can seem like an easy, quick, and effective way of losing weight. The effect of glorifying a skinny body is an increase in the development of eating disorders. Many psychological factors play a part in why people develop eating disorders. Low self-esteem, depression, body image distortion, and obsessive-compulsive disorder are only a few. Before an eating disorder develops people often feel inadequate, like they don’t really matter. Depression can sometimes lead to an eating disorder or vice versa, “’being severely underweight and malnourished, which is common in anorexia, can cause physiological changes that are known to negatively affect mood states,’ says Lisa Lilenfeld” (WebMD). People with eating disorders are
Eating disorders are becoming an increasingly common issue in North American society. There are three general types of eating disorders anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and binge eating. It is a shocking fact that girls at the young age of 13 are attempting to lose weight. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. In anorexia alone 20 percent of people will prematurely die from problems related to their disorder, for example, heart disease and suicide. There are many causes of eating disorders, some of which are social pressures, psychological factors, and interpersonal factors. In North American society the ideal body image portrayed by the media for women is tall and very thin and for men it is tall and muscular. Being overweight, or having any visible fat on the body is looked down upon. A gross amount of value is placed on having the “perfect body,” portrayed on television, movies, and magazines which, “[creates] a pervasive dissatisfaction in women about their bodies”(Eating Disorders Help Guide). This has a direct effect on why both women and men develop eating disorders. Both women and men strive to achieve the ideal body image. Depriving your body of food, or force vomiting can seem like an easy, quick, and effective way of losing weight. The effect of glorifying a skinny body is an increase in the development of eating disorders. Many psychological factors play a part in why people develop eating disorders. Low self-esteem, depression, body image distortion, and obsessive-compulsive disorder are only a few. Before an eating disorder develops people often feel inadequate, like they don’t really matter. Depression can sometimes lead to an eating disorder or vice versa, “’being severely underweight and malnourished, which is common in anorexia, can cause physiological changes that are known to negatively affect mood states,’ says Lisa Lilenfeld” (WebMD). People with eating disorders are
Cited: "Causes of Eating Disorders." Eating Disorders. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. . Jaret, Peter. "Eating Disorders and Depression: How They 're Related." WebMD. Web. 15 Feb. 2012. . Jonk, Ron. "Eating Disorders - Causes." University of Maryland Medical Center. Web. 15 Feb. 2012. . "What Causes Eating Disorders." National Eating Disorders Association. Web. 15 Feb. 2012. .