Eating Disorder Research Paper

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Eating Disorders and Mortality Jones 1 Introduction We live in a world that is conscious of our body images and that urges us (especially women) to try to improve our appearance for the approval of society. Eating disorders are defined by the cognitive and behavioral characteristics (Vervaet el al. 2003). There are three main types of eating disorders, they are anorexia nervosa, bulimic-type anorexia nervosa, and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is characterized or diagnosed, by an intense fear of fatness, maintaining a weight that is less than 85% of normal weight for one's age and height, disturbed perception of one's body or shape, and amenorrhea for a minimum of three consecutive menstrual cycles; but they are most distinguished…show more content…
Bulimia nervosa is reoccurring episodes of binging and purging to prevent weight gain, but they are unable to keep their weight below the 85% cut off and do not display amenorrhea (Polivy and Herman, 2002). Binge eating is where one eats a larger amount of food than most would in that given situation and a feeling of lack of control during this eating episode. Purging is where one expels the food they have consumed through induced vomiting, laxative use, diuretic (commonly known as a water pill), or enema abuse. According to Polivy and Herman (2002) there is a subdivision in bulimia nervosa that there is the purging type and the non-purging type; the non-purging type includes fasting or exercising. Eating disorders that do not meet the criteria to be a specific eating disorder, such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, are characterized as disordered…show more content…
They also state that bulimia nervosa has the characteristics that include thrill-seeking and excitability, affective instability and impulsivity, and a tendency towards dysphoria (a state of unease or generalized dissatisfaction with life) in response to rejection or non-reward. Evidence shows that athletics can help improve self-esteem, but some of the characteristics that are present in good athletes can be a predisposition factor that can lead to an eating disorder; characteristics such as competitiveness, performance standards, and perfectionism (Langmesser and Verscheure,

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