Biochemical Correlates of Anorexia and Bulimia
Millions of people in the United States suffer from anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is a dangerous eating disorder characterized by distorted body image, obsession with food and weight, drastic reduction in food intake often to the point of starvation, and extreme weight loss (1). Bulimia nervosa is a somewhat similar eating disorder more specifically characterized by recurring episodes of uncontrollable binge eating followed by self-induced vomiting or abuse of laxatives or diuretics (2).
The vast majority - more than 90 percent - of those afflicted with eating disorders are adolescent and young adult women (1). This has led to the popular belief that eating disorders can be attributed to social factors, specifically the heavy emphasis which is placed on thinness as a measure of physical attractiveness and feminine beauty in our culture. It is thought that women, especially young women, develop eating disorders in an attempt to conform to this ideal (1). While it is likely that such social factors do play an important role in the development of eating disorders, research has shown that several other psychological and biological factors are also involved. This paper will focus specifically on the biochemical factors, including abnormal activity of brain neurotransmitters, hormones and other brain chemicals, which have been implicated in these disorders.
Disturbances of the serotonergic pathways within the brain have been linked to the onset, persistence, and recurrence of eating disorders. In particular, it seems that increased serotonin activity in the brain may be responsible for anorexic behavior, while decreased serotonin activity may be responsib...
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The first political parties in America began to form at the end of the 18th century. "The conflict that took shape in the 1790s between the Federalists and the Antifederalists exercised a profound impact on American history." The two primary influences, Thomas Jefferson a...
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Crow, S.J., Peterson, C.B., Swanson, S.A., Raymond, N.C., Specker, S., Eckert, E.D., Mitchell, J.E. (2009) Increased mortality in bulimia nervosa and other eating disorders. American Journal of Psychiatry 166, 1342-1346.
It is difficult to treat if patients don’t gain weight. This documentary film described that fifty percent of individuals will relapse in the first year if normal weight has not be achieved prior to leaving treatment. Treatment requires a multidisciplinary team approach. In addition to restriction many patients also increase activity levels. The film also examined individuals that have Exercise Anorexia. In conclusion the documentary pointed out the disorders have links to Anxiety. They stated that Prozac and Paxil have been found helpful in treating patients. They noted that Bulimia is linked to depression. The film also described a research study conducted to examine satiety related to food and CCK Cholecystokinin disturbed digestion in individuals with eating disorders. CCK is a digestive hormone that stimulates fat and protein digestion, and promotes the feeling of satiety. The film also stated that it takes years to fully recover from
Homeschooling vs. public schooling is seen by many as a hot debate in the recent few years. The debate, for some people, is very hot that you only have to type homeschooling on Google search engine to find results of people accusing each others of being “inhuman” from both parties. However, rational debators in both parties claim that their way of educating is more beneficial for children in social, pyscological, and academic way. This makes it harder for parents to choose what is best for their childern. This essay is written to show the reader why, after all, the ancient method of homeschooling is better for you and your children.
...ing in bulimia nervosa: A crossover study. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 177, 259-266.
While bulimia often occurs with comorbid mood disturbances, the treatment benefit found for antidepressants in bulimia may not be merely alleviation of depressive symptoms; the increased serotonin levels also help reduce food intake. Looking at results of 14 studies of treatment of bulimia with antidepressants, it has been noted that administration to bulimics agents that increase the availability of serotonin virtually always produces better results than placebo, regardless of the presence or absence of depression (Alexander).
Considering the growing preoccupation of teenage girls with their weight and their bodies, eating disorders have become even more of a concern. In light of the fact that mortality in anorexia nervosa is among the highest of all psychiatric disorders, it is increasingly important to understand what causes eating disorders and how best to treat them (Herzog et al., 1996). A meaningful area of research to consider when trying to understand eating disorders is comorbidity. Such psychiatric disorders such as anxiety disorders, affective disorders, personality disorders, and substance abuse have been found to coexist, at least to some degree, with the eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. This paper will examine how anxiety disorders have been found to interact with both anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa.
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Seiler, Andy. “Williams adds musical magic to 'Harry Potter.’” USA Today. Gannett Co. Inc., 31 Nov. 2001. Web. 09 Nov. 2013.
Bulimia nervosa is a slightly less serious version of anorexia, but can lead to some of the same horrible results. Bulimia involves an intense concern about weight (which is generally inaccurate) combined with frequent cycles of binge eating followed by purging, through self-induced vomiting, unwarranted use of laxatives, or excessive exercising. Most bulimics are of normal body weight, but they are preoccupied with their weight, feel extreme shame about their abnormal behavior, and often experience significant depression. The occurrence of bulimia has increased in many Western countries over the past few decades. Numbers are difficult to establish due to the shame of reporting incidences to health care providers (Bee and Boyd, 2001).
The company concealed huge debts off its balance sheet, which resulted in overstating earnings. Due to an understatement of debts, the company was considered bankrupt in 2001. Shareholders lost $74 billion and a lot of jobs were lost because of the bankruptcy. The share prices of Enron started falling in 2000 and in 2001 the company revealed a huge loss. Even after all this, the company’s executives told the investors that the stock was just undervalued and they wanted their investors to keep on investing. The investors lost trust in the company as stock prices decreased, which led the company to file bankruptcy in December 2001. This shows how a lack of transparency in reporting of financial statements leads to the destruction of a company. This all happened under the watchful eye of an auditor, Arthur Andersen. After this scandal, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was changed to keep into account the role of the auditors and how they can help in preventing such
Anorexia nervosa and Bulimia nervosa are described as psychological eating disorders (Keel and Levitt, 1). They are both characterized by an over evaluation of weight. Despite being primarily eating disorders, the manifestations of bulimia and anorexia are different. They both present a very conspicuous example of dangerous psychological disorders, as according to the South Carolina Department of Health, “Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness” (Eating Order Statistics, 1). While Bulimia and anorexia both psychological disorders primarily prevalent in women, anorexia tend to have different diagnostic complexities, symptoms and physiological effects as compared to bulimia.
ABSTRACT: Home schooling is a controversial topic among educators. The issues that follow a child throughout their educational and social lives, are elevated when a child has been home schooled. There is no social environment for the child to learn to develop basic social skills; most home schooling environments are made up of a child, perhaps accompanied by a sibling, and the parent teaching the information given. There is no room for a developed personality that is constant with a child of equal age and grade in a normal schooling environment. Other problems include the quality of the teacher, lack of practice for standardized testing, bias grades, inconstant laws on home schooling from state to state, the overall education of a home schooled child, and the quality of the teacher. All these problems are explored, and discussed with in this essay.
All children in America have the right to a quality education. Most students receive that education through conventional means, going to a public or private school. There is another option for today's children, home schooling. Home schooling is a controversial issue. While it does have its benefits, some people believe it has too many downfalls to be an effective method of education. In this paper, topics such as academic impact, social impact, and parental opinions of home schooling will be discussed.