EATING DISORDERS
Anorexia (also known as anorexia nervosa) is the name for simply starving yourself because you are convinced you are overweight. If you are at least 15 percent under your normal body weight and you are losing weight through not eating, you may be suffering from this disorder. Bulimia (also known as bulimia nervosa) is characterized by excessive eating. and then ridding yourself of the food by vomiting, abusing laxatives or diuretics, taking enemas, or exercising obsessively. This behaviour of ridding yourself of the calories from consumed food is often called purging. Eating disorders are serious problems and need to he diagnosed and treated like any medical disease. If they continue to go untreated, these behaviours can result in future severe medical complications that can he life-threatening. ¡f you believe you may he suffering from an eating disorder or know someone who is, please get help. Once properly diagnosed by a mental health professional, such disorders are readily treatable and often cured within a few months time. A person with an eating disorder should not be blamed for having it ! The disorders are caused by a complex interaction of social, biological and psychological factors which bring about the harmful behaviours. The important thing is to stop as soon as you recognize these behaviours in yourself, or to get help to begin the road to recovery.
