Eating and Its Twin Disorders
An eating disorder is a mental illness that affects people's physical bodies. It can be defined by how people eat, their body weight and mass, and their lifestyle, all of which classify them as unhealthy people.
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Let's talk about eating first before we get into the deeper meaning.
Human bodies required a concentrated source of energy, which was primarily obtained from the foods and beverages that we consumed. Nutrients obtained from food fuel our bodies' ability to function in day-to-day activities. Simply says to live well, eat well.
There are Four Types of Eating:
Fuel eating also known as clean eating, eat to give your body the nutrients and energy it necessitates. Fresh, nutritious, and minimally processed foods are frequently consumed in this manner.
Fun eating, from the word itself, any food that we crave or enjoy eating without providing any nutritional value to our bodies is referred to as junk food (French fries, ice cream, cake, beer). We do these to fill ourselves up with the pleasure that these foods provide.
Fog eating occurs when we eat without being aware of or paying attention to the taste of our food or the number of times we eat. These are more about eating without taking the time to savor every bite of food; it's as if we're just eating to keep our mouth busy.
Storm eating is typically what we called binge eating. We eat a lot more than we usually do when we're eating out of control. You are aware that you are eating and that you have consumed a large amount of food, but you are unable to stop yourself from eating more. This usually happens when we are dealing with overwhelming emotions and the only thing that we find to cope with that distress is to consume food none stop. Folks often do this in private, and after consuming a large amount of food, they may feel embarrassed and ashamed and guilty over how much they consumed.
A person's body can suffer from a variety of complications if they do not lead a healthy lifestyle and live a well-balanced diet. Every complication that can hit the human body may not immediately show symptoms. Although one of the noticeable changes here is the weight of a person. Eating disorders are one of the most common ones faced by every individual when it comes to ingesting food.
Eating disorders do not develop as a result of a person's choice, rather, they develop as a result of various psychological influences that an individual experiences. This is a life-threatening mental illness because it affects not only an individual's social and functional role but can also lead to death if left untreated.
There are Six Common Types of Eating Disorders.
Anorexia Nervosa - People with these disorders mistakenly perceive themselves as overweight, despite the fact that they are dangerously underweight. They are afraid to gain weight which results in them restricting themselves from eating certain foods and forcefully restricting their calory intakes. The majority of those who suffer from these are those who modeled and performed on stage for entertainment.
Bulimia Nervosa - People who suffer from it frequently consume more calories than their bodies require. They usually can't stop themselves from eating until they are painfully full. Although, rather than becoming underweight, the person who is affected by it will maintain their natural weight.
Binge Eating Disorder - This is the most common disorder, and it's similar to bulimia, which is when people eat more than their bodies require. As previously stated, it is frequently done privately by a person as a result of an overwhelming feeling that they experience even if they are not truly hungry. They forcefully eat and then regret it shortly after finishing the larger amount of food.
Pica - A disorder in which a person eats things that aren't edible (soil, foam, plastic, paper, soap) and is thought to affect children and people with mental illnesses the most. It's so dangerous that it's possible that they'll die from poisoning as a result of it.
Rumination Disorder - This is a relatively new eating disorder in which people regurgitate the food they eat on a regular basis, with the option of swallowing or spitting it out. We've mostly observed this behavior in infants who only suck the juice or taste the food. This is a habit that can be experienced by children and adults alike, and it is not limited to infancy. This behavior can result in a deficiency in the availability of nutrients, which can lead to malnutrition.
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder - This occurs when an infant or child develops a habit of having no interest in the food they consume as an adult, causing people to undereat. This could be due to a lack of nutrients in their bodies, but it could also affect their growth and physique development.
It is believed that there are various factors that are mainly attributed to an individual's eating disorder. The first is an individual's personality traits; neuroticism, perfectionism, and impulsivity are instances of personality traits that can lead to an eating disorder.
Another factor is the country's perceived standards and ideals, which puts pressure on individuals to restrict their food intake in order to achieve their desired weight. Peer pressure can also contribute to the development of an eating disorder. Experts also believe that differences in human brain structures and levels of the brain messengers serotonin and dopamine could be also a factor.
The disrupted mind of those who suffer from this illness is prone to have suicidal thoughts. It takes a long time to recover from this type of illness. I used to deprive myself of food and force myself to follow an unhealthy diet in order to lose weight after being subjected to body shaming in junior high school. I yearned for my friends' approval in shaping my body and weight to the point where I was willing to put my health at risk just so they would accept me, but after a while, I realized how toxic this society can be. How can I, and others like me, be forced to do things we don't need to do in order to be accepted by the people in our lives. Our body shapes, weight, and curves are all determined by our genes. I recently went on a diet, a healthy diet, for myself, not just to prove to my peers that I can lose weight, but also to improve my health and love my physical appearance.
Self-appreciation and self-love are the most important thing that one must have, even if everyone in the world abandons us, at least we have ourselves who can appreciate what we have not based on any ideals or standards of others. I may have flaws, but that does not mean I will underestimate myself, we all have our own uniqueness. We were all gorgeous in our own way, and we thrived for our own happiness rather than for the approval of others.
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Disclaimer: I am neither a psychologist nor a financial advisor, and all of my pieces were done for entertainment purposes only. What I've written here is merely my personal opinion, and any statements made are based on my personal views and should not be taken as fact. Always do your due diligence.
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eating disorders do incredible damage to our system, the worst thing is that it is even silent, so we must be vigilant