Eating Disorder Help

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Author:
Thomas Morva

Some people may feel that they are fat, no matter how thin they actually are. Or they may feel guilty when they eat too much food. The guilt and shame from eating makes the person vomit up all their food. These people have bulimia nervosa, or bulimia, an eating disorder. The disorder has nothing to do with the digestive system, but rather with the mind. And though people with bulimia may share the same guilt and shame about food, and the same patterns of bingeing and purging, bulimia has many causes. Doctors have not identified any one cause of bulimia, but do know of several factors that may contribute to developing bulimia.
Bulimia may be caused by a genetic component. Certain genes may predispose a person to developing bulimia. Bulimia appears to run in families--people with relatives suffering from bulimia have a higher frequency of developing bulimia. This may, however, have more to do with family influences and role models than genetics.
Brain chemistry may also cause bulimia. Research indicates that people with bulimia tend to have different levels of a chemical in the brain called serotonin. Altered levels of serotonin may also contribute to clinical depression.
Social pressures may contribute to bulimia's development. People who want to please others may feel compelled to keep thin and fit. Women in particular receive daily messages to be thin. This drive may turn into an eating disorder.
Emotional stress from family problems or being a perfectionist may also contribute to a person developing bulimia.
A person with bulimia will first binge, meaning that he or she will eat more than 1,000 calories in one sitting. Sometimes, to a person with an eating disorder like a bulimia, eating a cookie might constitute a binge. The binge then triggers intense feelings of self-disgust and the person will induce vomiting, exercise excessively, or abuse laxatives to remove the perceived extra weight.
Bulimia is caused by numerous, subtle factors, and all people suffering from bulimia need treatment from a psychiatrist and therapy to break the binge-and-purge cycle. Bulimia is completely treatable.
About the Author
Bulimia Info provides detailed information about the causes, symptoms, and effects of bulimia; bulimia treatment and recovery; the relationship between anorexia and bulimia; and information about the "pro bulimia" viewpoint. Bulimia Info is affiliated with Original Content.

A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Eating Disorders... Eating Disorder - Bulimia Bulimia Nervosa is an eating disorder caused by a person's feelings of low self-esteem, worthlessness and depression. They view themselves as being fat and overweight, which causes them to resort to bizarre eating habits in order to lose weight. The bulimic will binge eat and then purge. This habit after awhile becomes addictive and they fall into a pattern of bingeing as a way to cope with their negative feelings about themselves. The bulimic binge consists of a large amount of food intake with a high calorie count, usually eaten in private away from other people. They will eat sweets and foods high in fat. Although some binges are planned, most are spur-of-the-moment, being triggered by an emotional outburst of a happening in their live that sinks them into a depression. They use food as a comfort, stuffing themselves and then vomiting. This practice can happen several times a day. The eating binge tends to have a numbing effect on their feelings, with a feeling of anger toward themselves shortly afterward. They are ashamed of their actions and realize they have lost control, which further contributes to their feelings of low self-esteem. This feeling of shame causes them to be reluctant to admit their problem to anyone and to seek help for their condition. The self-induced vomiting is done to compensate for their binges. They are relieved of the full feeling from eating too much food and expect the vomiting to prevent any weight gain from the binge. They also use laxatives, enemas, diet pills, fasts and extreme exercise in order to prevent weight gain. In some cases they will chew their food and then spit it out without swallowing it, thinking this will prevent any weight gain. Like the anorexics, bulimics feel their self-worth is determined by the...