Eating Disorders and the Body Revolution.
Eating disorders, and behavioural eating problems have a significant impact on health, and their manifestations are extremely varied.
Anorexia and bulimia are the two of the most well-known major eating disorders, and in this article we will see what forms they take and how to spot them.
But first let's take a little tour of a well-known star with recognized talent and one who is still getting talked about.
We decided to follow Lady Gaga, who through her courage, inspired us to write this article. The singer-songwriter and instigator of "the body revolution" has therefore created a special page on the Monsters.com website.
A very nice initiative and followed by thousands of fans! Proving that the star is not so Gaga at all!
Lady Gaga then explained on the official site littleMonsters.com, that she had gained 11 kilos: "I have been bulimic and anorexic since I was 15. But today I joined operation" body revolution." My mother and I created the Born This Way Foundation for one reason only: to inspire courage. This operation is an extension of that dream. Be courageous and celebrate what society perceives to be your flaws. ... Now that the body revolution has begun, post a photo of yourself celebrating your triumph over your insecurity."
What are the forms of major eating disorders?
Eating disorders appear in particular emotional contexts where the person is in psychological distress. There are 3 typical forms of eating disorders:
Anorexia nervosa :
To try not to eat, for fear of gaining weight. It is often associated with a distortion of self-image. The image that the mirror shows us, is out of line with what we perceive and what others perceive of us. We find ourselves too fat while others find us very thin.
Bulimia:
This disorder is characterized by way of eating food excessively or compulsively and then eliminating (or purging) it with laxatives or by vomiting. With bulimia, the person eats foods that they are not allowed to eat when during a phase of food restriction. These are usually fatty or sweet foods. Bulimia is a vicious circle which is difficult to detect by the person’s entourage, because weight remains stable, there are very few physical changes, but the feeling remains intense with the patient in question.
Overeating:
It is one of the lesser known disorders, but not the most widespread. Binge eating involves eating unreasonable amounts of food. The person eats large amounts of food even if they are not hungry.
There are still other atypical and unknown eating disorders such as orthoepy where people try to eat too healthily and when it is not healthy for their body, rumination, over-thinking about food, pathological snacking.
How to detect a potential eating disorder?
It is not always easy for a parent to detect the signs of a disorder or a future disorder. However, knowing that eating disorders are caused by a combination of individual psychological, family, environmental and socio-cultural factors, may lead you to be more vigilant. Here is a non-exclusive list according to the ANEB Anorexia Mental and Bulimia Foundation website:
Individual factors: initiation into a restrictive diet, personality traits (perfectionism, conformism, rigidity, impulsivity, obsessive traits), low self-esteem, difficulty expressing emotions and asserting oneself, priority or obsession of looking at others, isolation and withdrawal, difficulty concentrating, insomnia, guilt.
Environmental factors: traumatic events (separation, death, family conflicts, sexual or physical abuse, moving, transition to high school, lack of support from the network of friends).
