Eating disorders are characterized by abnormal characteristics of food that does not satisfy a physiological and psychological needs. The most common disorders are anorexia nervosa (anorexia stable), bulimia nervosa ("ravenous hunger") and compulsive overeating (eating of large amounts of food in a short time).
Anorexia nervosa is characterized by self-torture, hunger, weight loss, obsessive fear of getting fat and misperceptions about the beauty of the human body.
Bulimia nervosa is characterized by periodic compulsive eating abuse, after which there is a clearing by various means: by vomiting, using laxatives or extreme exercise.
Compulsive overeating is the most common eating disorder that is characterized by frequent cases of abuse of food, but not accompanied by a forced disposal of the stomach contents.
In the United States, about 10 million women and one million men suffer from one form of anorexia or bulimia. More and more people suffer from compulsive overeating. Another 70 million people throughout the rest of the world are trying to deal with the consequences of eating disorders.
Forty percent of new cases of anorexia occur in girls aged 15 to 19 years. This ratio increased every decade since 1930.
The number of registered cases of bulimia from the female at the age from 10 to 39 years between 1988 and the year 1993 has tripled.
Normal is not harmful teenager or adult amount of food should contain about 1800-2600 calories a day. During one episode of binge eating painful, people often eat up 20-25 times that amount that may exceed 50,000 calories, which can be roughly represented as a whole large pepperoni pizza, a large portion of ice cream, the packaging of biscuits, a bag of chips and a cake together. Patients with bulimia may eat an amount of food several times a day.
Bulimic commonly abused "prohibited food" such as poor food high in calories but low in nutritional value, or so-called "fast food", which offers a restaurant with a large bandwidth.
Bulimia use a laxative, believing that they can protect their bodies of the excess food, getting rid of them that way. However, the nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine, and laxative mostly triggered only large intestine, and that a person loses all further - water. Bulimia often overdose laxative, which results in inflammation of the intestinal walls, damage to the colon, severe dehydration, and lower levels of sodium and potassium in the body. Moreover, ironically, abuse laxatives often leads to constipation.
Anorexia nervosa has become a growing problem during the British Queen Victoria. Some researchers have speculated that food was one of the few areas of life, which to some extent controlled by women. In addition, women with excessive appetite accused of self-indulgence and debauchery. Conversely, brittle, thin and pale, women were regarded as a model of femininity and attractiveness.
People suffering from eating disorders, cases of depression, loneliness, drug or alcohol abuse, feelings of inadequacy, excessive excitement and inexplicable anger.
The researchers suggest that a significant role in the development of disorders of verbal behavior play genetic factors. Blood relatives of women suffering from anorexia is 11 times more likely to develop this disorder, and the relatives of women who suffer from bulimia, more than 4 times more likely to suffer from bouts of risk, "the wolf of hunger».
Often eating disorders associated with unstable or disturbed family relationships. However, often to the emergence of these problems causes too much attention to loving parents paid their children's stature.
Scientists believe that some girls develop anorexia, because they are afraid to leave their parents, especially their mothers. They are trying to have as little as possible, to delay their sexual development and to extend their stay in the imaginary child.
British physician Sir Richard Morton (1637-1698) is considered the first person who gave the first description of the symptoms of anorexia. We have heard the description of two cases: in one of them she was "sad and troubled" and "cried over books", in the second case it was a boy, "prone to too diligent doctrine».
Queen Victoria's physician, Sir William Gull (1816-1890), was the first who coined the term «anorexia nervosa» (anorexia nervosa) in his treatise «Anorexia Hysterica» (hysterical anorexia). His work has helped to move the focus of the study of the causes of anorexia in the field of psychiatry.
Anorexia nervosa ("an" -without, "orexia" -appetit, desire) is also known as the "syndrome of the rich girls».
The number of cases of anorexia nervosa has increased in the eighties of the last century, so that the disease became known as "disorder 80s».
The term "bulimia nervosa» ("bous" -byk, "limous" -golod) first entered the English Dictionary in the late 70s of the last century, although the description of this eating disorder has been known since ancient times.
Sufferers "ortoreksi" more concerned with not much food, and its quality. They no longer chase not the slenderness of his body, and his "inner purity».
Brain tumors and damage its parts are associated with the development of abnormal eating behavior and symptoms of anorexia or bulimia.