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You;re active. You watch what you eat. But are
you at risk of falling into a troubling but growing aiLment: an eating disorde r?
BYTAMEKIA
REECE
Ou may not be the type of persQn to starve herself CJrrun to the bathroom
Y
to vomit your last meal in the hopes of losing weight. But sometimes, in
the quest· for a toned and slim body, being a little too careful about what you
eat can cause a downward spiral that could lead to an all-out eating disorder.
Here's how to tell if your eating habits have you headed downhill.
On the Climb
It may seem like everywhere you turn someone knows someone who has an eating disorder. It's easy to pinpoint some reasons for the increase: media influence and peer
pressure all suggesting that "thin is where it's at." But another possible reason for the
rise is the heightened
awareness itself. "Eating disorders, in general, have been more
broadly publicized, and people are talking about them a lot more," says Juliet Zuercher,
RD, the director of nutrition services at Remuda Ranch Programs for Anorexia and
Bulimia in Wickenburg, Arizona. "Sometimes that increases the likelihood that others
are going to copycat or jump on the bandwagon
and say, 'Oh, well I never thought of
,-.
other injuries. And for people who vomit,
this - maybe I can try this, too."
According
Disorders
to the National
Association
(NEDA), an esti-
mated 11 million people in the
The Sopranos star
admitted to excessive exercise in her
battle with the
deadliest eating
disorder, anorexia
nervosa.
u.s.
burst blood vessels in the eyes, face or skin
aren't unusual, Zuercher adds.
suffer
And it can get even worse. "Because
from eating disorders like anorexia and
of the laxative abuse
bulimia, with 10 million of those being
comes with eating disorders, some people
women. WHy so many women? Our cul-
have trouble with their bowels, whether
ture today tends to place the entire value
it's constipation
of a person - particularly
Jamie-Lynn
Sigler
Eatirig
appearance,
focus
women - on
says Zuercher.
on
how
perfect
This undue
women
are
following her
struggle with
bulimia.
of the rectum
falls
And malnutrition
from self-starvation
can lead to respiratory problems, kidney
takes to obtain this ideal image, even if it
failure, blindness and even heart attacks.
means putting themselves at risk.
"Regular" women aren't the only ones
reaching for this so-called ideal. From The
Sopranos'
jamie-Lynn
Sigler
to
Paula
AU About You
So how do you know if you have an eating
disorder? Many people
think they can
Abdul to Mary-Kate Olsen, many celebri-
just look and tell, but it's not always that
ties have come forward to share their own
easy: "Obviously a woman with anorexia
battles with eating disorders.
Last fall,
a special issue of People magazine noted
the
constant
pressure
to be
thin
in
nervosa is going to be markedly underweight," Zuercher says. "But for bulimia
or binge-eating, it's very difficult to tell
Hollywood and told the story of Portia de
because many of the people are at a normal
Rossi and her battle to beat anorexia.
weight or slighdy above their ideal weight."
be caused by a host of reasons, including
low self.esteem, a history of sexual and/ or
physical abuse and difficulties expressing
feelings and emotions.
Eating disorders
also frequently occur with other psychiatric
conditions, such as depression, 'substance
abuse and anxiety disorders. Some studies
have even shown a hereditary link..
Eating
disorders
of
any
are a serious
psychological
Watch out for behavioral chanqes,
In addition to the physiological side
effects, some other signs you might
have an eating disorder include:
,.,
Constant obsession with food,
I
dieting and weight
••••
,.,
•••
•••••
4
•••••
"
•••••••
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••
_ •••••••••••••••••.•
A restrictive diet [refusal to eat
I
whole groups of foods; eating little
,.,
matter.
'Anorexia nervosa has the highest fatality
rate
Areyou walking a thin line?
or nothing at all!
Extreme Pressure
disorder,"
Zuercher says.
Even if the results aren't fatal, an eating disorder can cause side effects like pale
The star told her
story of dropping to
82 pounds at one
point before she
sought treatment.
(the lining
outside of the body).
extremes, she says. They'll do whatever it
It's not always about fitting a certain
One of the famed
Olsen twins
acknowledged she
entered a treatment
facility in her battle
with an eating
disorder.
Zuercher
AN ESTIMATED 11MILLION PEOPLE IN THE U.S.
SUFFER FROM EATING DISORDERS. TEN MILLION
OF THEM ARE WOMEN.
image, though. Often, eating disorders can
Mary-Kate
Olsen (right)
or diarrhea,"
says. Some even suffer from rectal prolapse
expected to look can cause some to go to
The American Idol
star has recorded
a public service
announcement
on behalf of the
National Eating
Disorders
Association, .
that sometimes
skin, dark circles around the eyes, britde
nails, hair loss, dizziness, fainting, fine
hair growth on the body (called lanugo)
and acne. Bone density is reduced, too,
which increases the risk of fractures and
Loss of menstruation
I
,.,
T'~;i'~ki~g'y~~'·;~':'f~t:' ~~~~"ih~~g'h
I
others don't
.
,.,
I
,.,
I
,.,
I
for three or
more consecutive months
······
..•.
n ..
'
.•...•.••
_.......•..
, •...•
_ .•..•.
_..
Rapid weight loss in a short period
of time
.................................................
,
Unusual food rituals, such as shifting food around the plate to make
it look as though you're eating or
hiding food to either avoid eating
it or save it for later
Fear of eating around others
.
"
WHEN SOMEONE ALREADY HAS ODD EATING HABITS
OR USES FOOD TO HANDLE STRESS, SOMETIMES ALL IT
TAKES IS A TRAUMATIC LIFE EVENT LIKE LOSING A JOB
OR A BAD BREAKUP TO CATAPULT THE DISORDERED
EATING INTO A FULL-BLOWN EATING DISORDER.
Another area to evaluate is exercise.
severe than an actual eating disorder, it's
Beating an eating disorder isn't going
"It's very common for people to couple
easy to cross the line between the two.
to be an easy task. 'We know that about
compulsive exercise with an eating disor-
VVhen someone
already has odd eating
10 percent of all eating disorders are going
der," Zuercher
says. "So if you have to
habits or uses food to handle stress, some-
to be chronic, meaning that for the rest
exercise every single day and you get
times all it takes is a traumatic life event
of the person's life they willhave
signifi-
really irritable or even depressed when
like losing a job or a bad breakup to cata-
cant impairment,"
you're unable to, that's another red flag,"
pult the disordered eating into a full-blown
need to constantly
Zuercher says. "They'll
she says.
eating disorder, Zuercher says.
and learn to abstain from dieting and to
Disordered Eating
Seek Help
ple who trigger behaviors of the eating
Just because you don't have what qualifies as
If you think you have an eating disorder
disorder," she explains.
an eating disorder doesn't mean all is good
(or you're on your way), get help immedi-
with you, eating-wise. Many people suffer
ately There are a variety of treatment
train their thoughts
stay away from the environments
or peo-
However, in the majority of cases, a
full recovery is possible. The important
from "disordered eating," troublesome eat-
options available, including psychological
thing, Zuercher
ing behaviors that occur less frequently or in
therapy; inpatient or outpatient treatment
have this problem
says, is admitting
a lower severity than those that garner the
centers, hospitalization and eating disorder
"That's the first step to having a healthy
diagnosis of an actual eating disorder.
support groups.
relationship with food again." 0
Some examples of disordered eating
are the chronic dieter who keeps up with
the latest diet trends and must try each
one, restrictive
diets (no-fat, low-carb,
the all-tuna diet) and infrequent
or purging
(any self-induced
signals a problem).
t
Although disordered
binging
vomiting
for more info, check out:
Remuda Ranch
www.remudaranch.com
National Eating Disorders Association
eating
is less
www.edap.org
National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders
Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org
you
and asking for help.
www.anad.org