2. Contributing Factors
• Psychological
– Low self-esteem
– Feelings of inadequacy or lack of control in life
– Depression, anxiety, anger or loneliness
• Interpersonal
– Troubled family and personal relationships
– Difficulty expressing emotions and feelings
– History of being teased or ridiculed on size or
weight
3. Contributing Factors (Cont’d)
• Biochemical
- In some individuals with eating
disorders, certain chemicals in the
brain that control hunger, appetite and
digestion are imbalanced.
• Biological
-Eating disorders run in families. Genes are
a contributing factor to eating disorders.
4. Contributing Factors (Cont’d)
• Environmental
-Magazines and newspapers focus on celebrities' minor
physical imperfections, such as gaining a few pounds or
having cellulite.
A stressful life event, such as losing a job or the
breakdown of a relationship
Bereavement
Pressures and stress at school, such as exams
or bullying
Difficult family relationships
Physical abuse
5. What is an Eating Disorder?
• Anorexia Nervosa
-characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss.
Because of the fear of gaining weight, people with this
disorder restrict the amount of food they consume.
• Bulimia Nervosa
-characterized by a cycle of bingeing and compensating by self-
induced vomiting, abusing a laxative, diuretic, or stimulatic
and/or excessive exercising because of an extensive concern
for body weight.
• Binge Eating Disorder
-characterized by recurrent binge eating without control.
6. Health Consequences of Anorexia Nervosa
• Abnormally slow heart rate
• Reduction of bone density
• Fainting, fatigue
• Dry hair and skin
• Severe dehydration which can result in kidney
failure
7. Health Consequences of Bulimia
• Irregular heartbeats and possibly
heart failure
• Inflammation and possible rupture of
esophagus from frequent vomiting.
• Chronic irregular bowel movements
8. Health Consequences of Binge Eating
Disorder (BED)
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol levels
• Heart disease
• Diabetes
• Gallbladder disease
9. Statistics about Eating Disorders
• Approximately 90-95% of sufferers are girls and women
• 1 to 3% of young women in the West have an eating
disorder such as anorexia nervosa , bulimia or binge eating
• In the West, eating disorders are the third most common
serious medical disorder in adolescents after asthma and
depression.
• In a study of Singapore Chinese schoolgirls with a mean age
of 16.5 years, 56% felt overweight despite a mean BMI of
18.89
• Between 5% - 20% of sufferers will die.
• Eating disorders typically appear in early to mid-
adolescence.
10. Warning Signs of Eating Disorders
• Dramatic weight loss or weight gain
• Preoccupation with weight, food, calories and
dieting
• Frequent comments about feeling “fat”
• Denial of hunger.
• Consistent excuses to avoid mealtimes.
• Withdrawal from usual friends and activities.
11. Warning Signs of Eating Disorders
(Cont’d)
• Frequent trips to the bathroom after meals,
signs and smells of vomiting.
• Discolouration or staining of the teeth
• For Binge eating, includes eating much more
rapidly than normal and often eating alone
because of shame or embarrassment.
12. Treatments/Therapies
• Adequate nutrition, reducing excessive exercise and
stopping purging behaviours are the foundations of
treatment. Specific forms of psychotherapy, or talk
therapy, and medication are effective for many eating
disorders. However, in more chronic cases, specific
treatments have not yet been identified. Treatment plans
often are tailored to individual needs and may include
one or more of the following
• 1. Individual, group or family psychotheraphy
• 2. Medical care and monitoring
• 3. Nutritional counseling
• 4. Medications
13. How to Intervene
• It is important to express your concerns in a
loving and supportive way to the sufferer.
• It is also necessary to discuss your worries
with the sufferer early on rather than wait
until the sufferer has endured damaging
physical and emotional effects of eating
disorder.
• Request the sufferer to explore your concerns
with a counselor, doctor or nutritionist
regarding eating issues. Accompany the
sufferer on their first visit.
