eating disorder
We will help you to get an overview of the following eating disorders:
- Anorexia (= anorexia nervosa)
- Bulimia nervosa (= bulimia)
- Binge Eating (= psychogenic hyperphagia)
definition
Every living being needs a regular and (desirably) balanced diet to ensure its own survival. For us humans, however, food also has other meanings. For example, eating can be seen as a mirror of one's inner psychological state. The first interview with the psychiatrist includes e.g. always the question of appetite.The change in eating behavior can, however, become so great that it is no longer a symptom of an illness, but becomes an illness itself.
It is generally in no way to be described as pathological if you react to psychological stress and changes with changed eating behavior (which person does not know the loss of appetite before exams or the chocolate thirst for lovesickness). However, the changed eating behavior becomes problematic when it is no longer temporary, but rather becomes a fixed and later also a controlling factor in life and an eating disorder develops.
Eating disorders often occur together with other mental disorders. E.g. the risk for patients with a borderline disorder to develop an additional eating disorder is over 50%.
anorexia
Anorexia nervosa / anorexia is an eating disorder, the focus of which is weight loss. This goal is often pursued by the patient with such consistency that it can even lead to life-threatening conditions. The diagnosis is i.a. ensured by the fact that the patient's body weight is at least 15% below that of a "normal" comparison person, and that there is a noticeable change in the patient's hormone balance.
Read more on the subject at:
- anorexia
- How thin can you be?
bulimia
The main characteristic of bulimia disorder is recurrent binge eating. During these binge eating, the patient ingests a very large amount of food in a short period of time. This amount is significantly larger than that which a healthy person consumes in a comparable period of time. The binge eating may or may not be accompanied by vomiting.
Read more on the subject here: Bulimia nervosa
Binge eating disorder
In the case of binge eating disorder (= psychogenic hyperphagia), there are recurring "eating attacks". These are very, very uncomfortable for the patient and there is often great disgust for oneself. The eating attacks occur several times a week and there are no weight-regulating measures (vomiting, laxatives, etc.).
Read more on the subject here: Binge Eating
Obesity
The term Obesity (Obesity) describes a condition in which a person becomes overweight and is exposed to health risks as a result. The degree of a person in need of treatment Obesity (Overweight) is calculated using the so-called Body mass index.
Eating disorder therapy
General therapeutic approaches to treatment are discussed in our chapter on Eating Disorder Therapy.
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