Overview of Eating Disorders in Children

Written by HealthyPlace.com Staff Writer

My 9th grade year in high school I went from 150 lbs. to 115 lbs. in less than 2 months. My mom knew something was going on because I was losing so much weight, but she only saw me eat dinner, which I threw up anyway (I was at school for the other 2 meals, so she never knew that I never ate them).

When she found out from the school guidance counselor, she made me eat, and she wouldn't let me flush the toilet without her checking it first. So I became desperate. I hid plastic bags under my bed, and after dinner I'd lock myself in my room, ridding myself of the little I'd eaten. Then, the next day before my mom would come home from work, I'd flush the contents down the toilet.

I thought everything was good, then I started getting dizzy spells. I passed out twice in one day, then my mom took me to the doctor. They did an EKG and found out my heart rate was 41. I didn't know what that meant. They put it in my terms by saying that if my heart rate goes below 40, I'd be a vegetable. One more day of my horrible habits and I would've finally got my wish to die.

- Anonymous

Often it is difficult for adults to recognize that a child is experiencing problems related to the intake of food and control of weight. It can be even harder for parents to believe that their own child might have such a problem. However, an increasing number of children in our culture are developing eating disorders, and, if left untreated, eating disorders can lead to serious physical and mental health problems, including death. Early detection and treatment of an eating disorder increases the likelihood of a full recovery and return to a healthier and fuller life.

What Are Eating Disorders?

The word "eating" in the term "eating disorders" refers not only to a person's eating habits per se, but also to his/her weight-loss practices and attitudes towards body shape and weight. However, such habits, practices and beliefs do not, in themselves, constitute an eating disorder. A "disorder" results when these attitudes and practices are of such an extreme nature that one develops the following:

• An unrealistic perception of body weight and shape
• Anxiety, obsession and guilt related to weight and/or eating
• Potentially life-threatening physiological imbalances
• Loss of self-control in regards to eating and weight maintenance
• Social isolation

The development of an eating disorder may be caused by several factors, including biological or genetic susceptibility, emotional problems, problems in relationships with friends or family members, personality problems, and societal pressures to be thin. Such pressures include both blatant and subtle messages from the media, friends, athletic coaches and family members. While eating disorders tend to occur more often in females than in males, males are not immune. A growing number of young males are being diagnosed with eating disorders. Gay adolescents and certain types of athletes may be especially susceptible.

The diagnostic manual used by mental health practitioners currently recognizes two primary types of eating disorders: Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. Consideration is also being given to officially recognizing a third type called Binge Eating Disorder.

Anorexia Nervosa

The essential features of Anorexia Nervosa are:

• A refusal to maintain a minimally normal or healthy body weight. An adolescent suffering with Anorexia Nervosa is literally capable of starving him or herself to death.
• An intense fear of gaining weight. Calories, food, and weight management are the controlling factors in the person's life.
• A significant disturbance in the perception of the size and/or shape of his or her body. Where others may see a starving, emaciated body, a person with Anorexia Nervosa will see herself as "fat".
• A female with Anorexia Nervosa who would otherwise have regular menstrual periods will experience the cessation of her menstrual cycles.

While the term anorexia refers specifically to a loss of appetite, this is rarely the case with people suffering from this disorder. Those with Anorexia Nervosa actually experience extreme hunger and some may even engage in binge eating on occasion. However, eating binges are inevitably followed by some sort of "purge" activity that is intended to compensate for the earlier binge. A purge may be accomplished through a number of means including self-induced vomiting, overuse of laxatives or diuretics, or excessive exercise.

Bulimia Nervosa

Bulimia Nervosa is marked by binge eating, and excessive and inappropriate compensatory strategies to prevent weight gain. Also characteristic is an extreme concern about body weight and shape. Binge eating is defined as eating a quantity of food that is well in excess of what most people would eat during the same time period and under similar circumstances. In addition, there is a sense of lack of control over eating during the binge as well as an absence of the physical sensations that signal that the stomach is overly full. The binge may serve as an escape from unpleasant feelings, but eventually it ends and the person is left with an intense anxiety about weight gain. In order to compensate for the large quantities of food just ingested, the individual will "purge" the food by self-induced vomiting, excessive exercise, use of laxatives or diuretics, engaging in a highly restrictive diet, or some combination of these methods.