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Anna Lewis

Professor Thomas

ENG 1201 Online

19 March 2019

Psychological Eating Disorders

30 million people of different genders and ages experience an eating disorder

just in the United States, as well as every hour at least one person passes away as an

immediate result. This makes eating disorders to be a leading cause of death within our

country. A common misinterpretation of eating disorders is that they are created solely

by someone's choice of eating too much, eating too less or not eating the correction

nutrition. Most see eating disorders as someone's lifestyle choices, or they are simply

going through a phase. However they are serious mental disorders. Eating disorders

affect one’s physical, psychological and social ability as well as with life-threatening

consequences and illnesses. Eating disorders affect one's mental and physical health

greatly, and cannot be solely confined into what one eats.

The first thing to be covered is the different kinds of eating disorders. The most

commonly heard of is Anorexia. This is when someone does not eating enough of the

right nutrients, or does not eat at all In result they lose weight drastically. Anorexia can

be identified in two cases. One is the restricting type which is losing weight through

dieting, over exercising, and fasting. The other is binge eating. This is when one binges

on a big amount of food then cause self induced vomiting and excessive exercise to

make up for it (Healthline, Healthline Media). This eating disorder is most common

within young girls and women trying to meet a certain body image that is advertised to
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them. According to the National association of Anorexia, almost 1 percent of women

and 0.3 percent of men goes through anorexia in their lifetime. There is also a huge

increase in 15 to 19 year old girls (Healthline, Healthline Media). Anorexia victims often

exercise compulsively and refuse to eat in front of others. Anorexia is very damaging to

the body. Over time bones begin to thin, hair and nails become very weak and brittle,

and women can suffer from infertility. In severe cases multi-organ failure and death can

be a direct result. This is because you are depriving your body of the basic nutrients it

needs to fully function and perform the duties it needs to in order to keep one's body

healthy (“Anorexia Nervosa.” Psychology Today). Anorexia is relatively the easiest

eating disorder to spot, because one's body is so damaged. However others you cannot

tell solely from appearances.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is an example of an eating disorder not easily

spotted from appearance. This is when one sees a major flaw about themself and will

put obsessive focus towards it. In other eating disorders, someone is preoccupied by

their overall weight and body image. In contrary someone who suffers from body

dysmorphic disorder, they are preoccupied with one specific body part such as common

ones like nose, butt, or teeth (“Muscle Dysmorphia & Body Image in Men.”). Most males

who suffer from an eating disorder suffer from Muscle Dysmorphic Disorder. It is

popularly known or “Bigorexia” by social media. This is the most common disorder

among men because it is striving to be muscular and lean. Symptoms of this is

excessive time weightlifting to increase muscle mass and panicking over when they

cannot work out and tend to suffer from anxiety when they cannot. Seeing the difference

between regular weight lifting and muscle improvement and MDD is very important.
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Bulimia Nervosa is partwhat similar to anorexia, however it is eating irregular,

huge, and most usual unhealthy amounts of food in a small period of time, then making

up for it by fasting, or self-induced vomiting. Someone who suddenly loses a drastic

amount of weight, begins to diet, and their control of food intake becomes very

important in a negative way could be hurting from this. According to the National Eating

Disorders Association, Someone suffering from Bulimia Nervosa could also look bloated

from fluid retention which is an accumulation of fluid in body tissues and cavity. If

someone has been practicing this for awhile certain dental issues result. These include

enamel erosion and cavities which is because of the recurring action of vomiting. The

fluid found in our stomach is acid which breaks down our enamel. (“Bulimia Nervosa.”

National Eating Disorders Association). Bulimia can have major impacts on someones

body because of the recurring practice of binging and purging. The entire digestive

system is affected, it causes electrolyte and chemicals to be unbalanced in the body

which affects the heart and more major organs and their functions. This ultimately ends

in organ failure.

Binge-eating disorder is the practice of eating abnormal and big portions of food

in small periods of time repeatedly. Someone who is suffering from this will theoretically

starve themself then eat irregular amounts of food. The patient will have a terrible

relationship with food, as some days they can go without eating anything then the next

eat an irregular large amount. According to the National Association of Anorexia

Nervosa, 2.8% of adults in america suffer from binge eating disorder in their lifetime.

This is most likely caused by a depression state or suffering from anxiety and or a

trama. If a close relative has had binge eating disorder, that person has a 50% chance
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of inheriting it. Stress is a huge cause of a binge-eating disorder. One is busy focusing

on work, school, their children etc. that they push eating to the side and then makes up

for it. Now this example can be very minor or can progressively get more serious.

There are a lot more eating disorders than the four described above, however

just less common. Pica is a when one eats things that do not provide any nutritional

value. Someone will do this for periods around a month. Substances include dirt, soil,

chalk, paper, hair, cloth, detergent and more (‘’Anorexia Nervosa.” Psychology Today,).

This is most commonly found in people with mental disabilities, young children and

pregnant women. This certainly has drastic impacts on someone's body. Rumination

Disorder is the practice of regurgitating food and then swallowing it again. Such period

will averagely last for at least one month just like pica. One will chew, regurgitate and

swallow or spit out food. This is a voluntary action. People suffering from rumination

disorder need therapy to stop the action because soon they cannot control it happening

(‘’Anorexia Nervosa.” Psychology Today,). Their brain as well as their organs began to

find this action normal, and will not be able to keep food down voluntary. Such teeth

problems also result because the stomach acid breaks down the enamel.

Now that most eating disorder have been explained, it is important to understand

how they are caused. Eating disorders can be caused by many different factors

including genetics, the biology of one's brain, personality traits and cultural beliefs.

Biologically speaking, having a close relative who suffers from an eating disorder or a

mental illness such as depression, addiction, or anxiety presents an immediate increase

in a person’s likeness of developing an eating disorder (“Eating Disorders.” American

Psychological Association). To add, different twin studies show evidence that eating
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disorders can be hereditary. For twins who were separated at birth, if one of them

develops an eating disorder from their own personal experiences, the other has a 50%

chance of potentially developing one even if they did not share the same experiences.

This is due to both twins sharing the same brain chemistry (‘’Anorexia Nervosa.”

Psychology Today,). Psychological characteristics also have a huge impact on how

severe an eating disorder can be. Someone who is a perfectionist, especially a

subcategory called self-oriented perfectionism, sets unrealistic expectations for

themselves, causing a result of disordered eating to meet their expectations. It is not

uncommon for people to not like their body, but people with an eating disorder are more

likely to see this to an extreme (“Risk Factors.” National Eating Disorders Association).

It is also known that the majority of people who suffer from anorexia have anxiety

disorders. These include obsessive-compulsive disorder and social phobia.

Culturally, our society has been a main source of causing eating disorders. There

are perceived pressures of having to be thin and to have a certain body type. These

stem out of influences such as beauty models advertised and obesity warnings.

Individuals also may be involved in a sport such as gymnastics, cheer, wrestling or

other sports that enforce low weight and certain body image for that sport. A study

conducted by Karin de Bruin and Raôul R.D. Oudejans was investigating how body

image contributes to eating disorders from a women athlete perspective. The results

showed a major distinguishment within women athletes. It was found that rowing

athletes said their eating disorder did not have to do with negative body image but was

rather caused because they had to be a certain fit and shape for their sport. Eating
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disorders can majorly be caused by adolescents trying to excel in their athletic sport,

which causes them to strive to fit the image of that sport.

Certain outside influences greatly affect and increase someone's relationship

with food. Discrimination, bullying and stereotyping solely based on someone's weight

are all major contributors in our society. Society promotes the idealistic “thin” and to

young children being exposed to this, that is what they associate the correct body type

to be. Teasing, bullying, and weight shaming are another big social influence. According

to the National Eating Disorders Association 60% of people who were affected by an

eating disorder stated that bullying was a major contributor to the development and

creation of their eating disorder.

It is very important to seek treatments and get help for such illnesses. According

to the American Psychological Association, eating disorders frequently go untreated and

unnoticed. Less than 13 percent of teens and young children with eating disorders

receive treatment. This is due to the fact that adolescents do not want to be

embarrassed of their disorder and often rather push it to the side and hide it so loved

ones don't realize. When these kinds of disorders are not treated they leave devastating

consequences. People suffering from anorexia have a death rate 18 times higher than

relatively healthy people (“Eating Disorders.” American Psychological Association).

Psychologists have a very important role in the treatment of eating disorders. So

much of an eating disorder comes from how a patient sees themselves. Some methods

psychologists use to improve one's self image is replacing destructive thoughts and

behaviors with positive ones. For example, someone with anorexia will constantly think

that they are overweight and fat. A psychologist would try to reverse this thought to
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something more positive like body positivity. They try to focus more on health rather

than their weight. Psychotherapy may be needed to focus on improving patients'

personal relationships with themself, family and close friends. Most often one's

relationship with food is damaged from a trauma they experienced, such as bullying,

abuse, sport body image etc. Psychologists aim to help the patients recover from this

event so they are able to be comfortable and confident within themself. (“Eating

Disorders.” American Psychological Association). Although medication is available for

individuals with bulimia, it is not recommended to be used to replace psychotherapy.

The sooner treatment starts the more likely it is to work. the longer these such eating

habits continue, the more serious and regular they become, and also being harder to

treat and recover from.

The United States National Library of Medicine talks about neuropsychology

which is the structure/function of our brains and how it relates to psychological

behaviors. It proposes concepts on eating disorders. Eating disorders are serious

psychiatric pathologies. The lack of progress in treatment development, proves that little

to none is known about the pathophysiologic mechanisms that are responsible for the

development of an eating disorder. Trying to find an effective treatment for such eating

disorders has been a struggle for most doctors, psychologists, nutritionists and or

anyone in the health related field. Some researchers found new focuses, such as the

study of endophenotypes. Endophenotypes are a biological trait that reflects the

function of a biological system. They help show relations to a root of an disease, that

shows more than a broad clinical phenotype (“Endophenotype.”). Also disease-

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associated traits, that can better explain the relationship between underlying genes and

neuropsychological functions in eating disorders.

Different parts of the brain influence how an eating disorder is created. The

dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is like the self control center of the brain. It helps stop and

limit impulsive decisions. In people who suffer from anorexia, this part of the brain tends

to be over worked as the person refuses to give in and eat food. Anorexia is starving

your body, and one has a natural reaction of craving food. The visual cortex, located in

the back of the brain, processes perceived information. The visual cortex of anorexics

compared to healthy brains is increasingly active when thoughts of food come up. The

ventral striatum, located in the inner part of the brain, is a piece in the brain's reward

circuit. Anorexics ventral striatum is hypersensitive to flavors healthy peoples find

rewarding. This causes the person suffering from anorexia to lose enjoyment in food.

The insula, located under the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, controls feelings such as

pain and hunger. This part of the brain is majorly damaged when suffering from any

eating disorder because it will not be able to distinguish sweets and other signals

correctly.
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Fig. 1 Anorexic women's brains compared to healthy-weight woman (Meghan

Rosen).

A study conducted, a woman who is suffering from anorexia gets a taste of a

sugary treat which is shown in yellow, and then does not receive it, shown in blue. The

woman's brain reward circuitry is more activity than a woman who is at a healthy weight

or even an obese women.

There have been multiple new develops in the field of eating disorders. Angela

Guarda, a Professor of Behavioral Sciences and Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University

expressed very good breakthroughs relating to insurance and how we tackle eating

disorders financially. There has been a development of two federal laws, the Mental

Health Parity Act, as well as the Affordable Care Act. These both make more people

eligible for treatment of such eating disorders. The Affordable Care Act does not allow

insurance to deny coverage for an already existing condition. It also provides coverage

for youth up to 26 years under their parents’ insurance. This is most important because

it is more likely someone develops an eating disorder in their teens. (Guarda, Angela).
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She then follows stating that the major problem with treatments of eating disorders is

that residential treatments for anorexia require months to years of treatment for patients

to restore their healthy weight. But the guidelines created by insurance for medical

needs to help ongoing hospitality or residential care are very strict. Even if patients

qualify for a long period treatment, insurance will only cover part of weight restoration.

In conclusion, eating disorders affect one's mental and physical health greatly,

and cannot be solely confined into what one eats. Most see eating disorders as

someone's lifestyle choices, or they are simply going through a phase. Eating disorders

affect one’s physical, psychological and social ability and with life-threatening

consequences and illnesses. Eating disorders affect one's mental and physical health

greatly, and cannot be solely confined into what one eats. The understanding of the

significance of this will greatly impact those who suffer from it, and can help prevent it in

the future.

Work Cited

‘’Anorexia Nervosa.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers,

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www.psychologytoday.com/us/conditions/anorexia-nervosa.

“Bulimia Nervosa.” National Eating Disorders Association, 22 Feb. 2018,

www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/bulimia.

de Bruin, A. P.(Karin), and Raôul R. D. Oudejans. “Athletes’ Body Talk: The Role of

Contextual Body Image in Eating Disorders as Seen Through the Eyes of Elite\

Women Athletes.” Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, vol. 12, no. 4, Dec.

2018, pp. 675–698. EBSCOhost,

sinclair.ohionet.org:80/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=

true&b=s3h&AN=133922561&site=eds-live.

“Eating Disorders.” American Psychological Association, American Psychological

Association, www.apa.org/helpcenter/eating.

“Endophenotype.” Endophenotype - an Overview | ScienceDirect Topics,

www.sciencedirect.com/topics/neuroscience/endophenotype.

Guarda, Angela. “Expert Q & A: Eating Disorders.” Warning Signs of Mental Illness,

2018, www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/eating-disorders/expert-q-and-a.

Jáuregui-Lobera, Ignacio. “Neuropsychology of Eating Disorders: 1995-2012.”

Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, Dove Medical Press, 2013,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3621725/.

“Muscle Dysmorphia & Body Image in Men.” BDD,

www.bddfoundation.org/muscle-dysmorphia-body-image-in-men/.

Unknown. “Neuroimaging Improves Understanding of Eating Disorder by Meghan

Rosen.” Neuroimaging Improves Understanding of Eating Disorder by Meghan

Rosen, 1 Jan. 1970,

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www.rameynutrition.blogspot.com/2013/11/neuroimaging-improves-

understanding-of.html.

“Risk Factors.” National Eating Disorders Association, 3 Aug. 2018,

www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/risk-factors.

“Types and Symptoms • National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated

Disorders.” National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders,

anad.org/education-and-awareness/about-eating-disorders/eating-disorder-

types-

and-symptoms/.

“6 Common Types of Eating Disorders (and Their Symptoms).” Healthline, Healthline

Media, www.healthline.com/nutrition/common-eating-disorders#section 3.