Eating Disorders and Their Affects | Teen Ink

Eating Disorders and Their Affects

March 27, 2009
By PrincessofEngland1633 BRONZE, South Bend, Indiana
PrincessofEngland1633 BRONZE, South Bend, Indiana
3 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Most of you guys have heard of the word anorexia and bulimia, medically classified as eating disorders but you do not know much about them.Just this morning, I walked into the store and began browsing through a magazine selections.I can across many magazines, but on caught my eye. It was the well-know people magazine and the front cover was smeared with Kiera Knightlys face insisting that she had an eating disorder. This was not unusual for me since I have read many articles, however lately just looking on the street I can spot someone with a raging eating disorder. What is the cause of eating disorders? What age do you commonly find them? Is there a cure?
There are many causes for the affects of eating disorders. Psychologists argue that it is society's fault while others believe it is a control issue. The truth, however, is that there are many things that can cause a person to get an eating disorder. It could be that they were abused and are scared of the world. Thinking about food keeps their minds off the real issues. It could be a control issue. They need control in their lives and the only way they feel they can get it is by not eating, something that they can control. I am not saying that society has no affect on this disease because for some girls it may be the pressure to be skinny that drives them to the extremes, but there could be other things that are causing this.The list goes on and on for why and how people develop eating disorders.

What age group is most common? All ages can get it but it is most commonly found in girls between the ages of 15 and 25. This is not the only limit since children as young as 8 are showing up in clinics looking for a way out of this horrible disease.

1% of the population in the United States has an eating disorder. That is a lot of people, but the sad truth is that their is no cure, and 5% of eating disorders become fatal and those young people die. 25% never recover and stay living with the disease their whole entire life, while 50% recover but show symptoms of it mentally. Less than 18% of people will fully recover from their eating disorder. Things such as shock therapy, family therapy, and individual therapy are used to talk about the individuals problems. Sometimes the patients refuse help, and most end up in the hospital where a feeding tube is placed in them, providing them with enough nutrients so they can survive, and the rest who do not want help, usually die.

The whole point of this is to show that lately eating disorders are becoming more and more common in girls and even guys in the United States. I too have suffered anorexia for 4 years and know many people who have also suffered, even two who have died. What i want all of you guys to do is sit down and think about weather you really want to get into this kind of thing. Trust me from experience, once you get trapped there is little hope of you escaping.


The author's comments:
If you have an eating disorder do not wait. It can take your life.Ask for help!

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