Eating Disorders: Types and Treatment Options

When a person experiences acute changes in eating pattern such as extreme overeating or reduction of food intake, he/she can be diagnosed with an eating disorder. Such people may also be experiencing extreme concern or distress regarding their body shape or weight. Eating disorders are extremely complicated and in spite of scientific research that has been undertaken to understand them, cause for these illnesses still remains elusive.

Eating disorders are of different types. One form of eating disorder is Anorexia nervosa. People who suffer from this disorder do not eat enough because of their imagination that they are very fat. Such people may also suffer from physical and psychiatric illnesses simultaneously. So also conditions such as obsessive behavior, depression, anxiety, neurological and cardiovascular complications including impaired physical development may be other prevailing conditions suffered by such people. Studies have proven that some medications, such as mood stabilizers or anti-depressants may be effective in treating patients with this eating disorder to some extent.

Bulimia nervosa is the other type of eating disorder. In this case, people tend to overeat and then purge through a method of self-induced vomiting or use of laxatives.

Women are more likely to suffer from eating disorders than men. Eating disorders can result in kidney and heart problems and can also become fatal. You have to get help early which is very important. Treatment involves mental health therapy, monitoring, nutritional counseling and intake of medicine.

Those suffering from binge eating disorder mostly would have lost control over the amount of food they consume. They will not be able to stop eating. Such people binge more frequently for several months. People who indulge in binge eating eat unusually large amounts of food quickly and have no control over what they eat. This kind of eating pattern is more commonly seen among people who are obese. Many types of medical advancements have taken place to cure eating disorders. However, treatments have not been identified to cure chronic cases.