In this Golden age of humanity with technology at the fingertips of mankind and world wide global awareness, it's hard to imagine from the comfort of well lit homes, a large population of the human race lives without fresh water and a nourishing daily meal. In the United States of America it has been said of an over abundance of food, though many of the citizens are forced to consume highly processed ready made meals in order to survive due to poverty. These meals are high in fat, sodium and of course, calorie, leaving the consumer with extra weight. This leads to the image of "'merica" with over weight men and women on scooters. While some of this is actually a result of poor self control or a medical issue, many can attribute it to having a very low income and the substance affordable is akin to garage. "Big" a book by some author, chronicles a young women who is very overweight by the design of her home environment. Her mother is disabled, obese and living off the government. She gets a job, goes to fat camp and learns why she can never loose weight. With all of this in mind, not to mention the idolization of stick thin models and actors, its not hard to figure out what the mind of an adolescent will conclude. Weight equals prosperity; being heavy is unsuccessful and ugly, whist-while bones and tight skin stretched over cranium is attractive and desirable. This of course calls Eating disorders to mind; Anorexia nervosa, Blumina, and EDNOS (eating disorder not diagnosed). In light of what is going on in the world today, eating disorders seem farfetched and frivolous. Anorexia Nervosa could be considered a classic example of a serious eating disorder as it is defined as having a fatal a... ... middle of paper ... ...he common world. Through isolation and ostracization of these individuals who developed these disorders when they should have been refining common social skills and relationships, they become set apart and put on stage as having an ideal figure or made to be a kin to circus freaks. The solution is a difficult but simple one, the individual in question has to learn to accept whatever may have caused them to trip down this violent and dangerous road to adulthood and left unchecked, the grave. Works Cited http://www.2medusa.com/2009/01/anorexic-bulimic-pro-ana-mia-some-tips.html http://www.drphil.com/slideshows/slideshow/6707/?id=6707&slide=2&showID=1774&preview=&versionID= http://www.thewhitegoddess.co.uk/the_goddess/goddess_glossary.asp http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=By_Illness&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=7409
Each year millions of people in the United States develop serious and often fatal eating disorders. More than ninety percent of those are adolescent and young women. The consequences of eating disorders are often severe--one in ten end in death from either starvation, cardiac arrest, or suicide. Due to the recent awareness of this topic, much time and money has been attributed to eating disorders. Many measures have been taken to discover leading causes and eventual treatment for those suffering from anorexia. (http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource ...er.html#Causes of Eating Disorders) )
Our society today is heavily influenced by the media and the imagery it shows. Though it may be indirect, the media provides unhealthy messages about ideal body sizes, gender attractiveness, and weight control that make women view themselves in a negative way. Magazines, television, and movies influence teenage girls on what they believe their body image should be. The images they show set the standard of what is considered physically attractive in our society. With the use of photoshop, media depicts falsified images of models and actresses to create a perfected look that is unattainable by the average woman. This creates a desire among teenage girls to look like these stars that are often shown. When teenage girls look at these images, they compare themselves to those images, and then judge themselves based on these comparisons. These judgements can potentially lead to eating disorders. In order to prevent the risk of eating disorders among teenage girls, the media should depict a typical image of people, rather than idolizing a specific standard of beauty.
Anorexia nervosa is a life threatening eating disorder defined by a refusal to maintain fifteen percent of a normal body weight through self-starvation (NAMI 1). Ninety-five percent of anorexics are women between the ages of twelve and eighteen, however, “…in the past twenty years, this disorder has become a growing threat to high school and college students”(Maloney and Kranz 60). Anorexia produces a multitude of symptoms, and if not treated, anorexia can lead to permanent physical damage or death.
There are many forms of eating disorders in the world; however, the two most common disorders are Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. Anorexia and Bulimia are found mostly in teens and young adult women (Amjad). Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder in which a person will starve them self in order to loose weight. (Amjad) Bulimia Nervosa is another common form of an eating disorder. In this case a person will go through periods of binge eating and then self-induce themselves to purge or vomit. (Amjad) Although we know many things about the physical aspects of these disorders, scientists still ponder on why people may develop one or both of these two eating disorders. Through much research, scientists may have found three possible explanations, which are pressure from society and friends, genetic links, or mental health related issues, as well as through pop culture media. There are also treatments available to those that fall victim and for those who want to be anorexic or bulimic there is support website that you give you tips and tricks to help you get started. Most people would say that in order to strive to be what society wants a person to look like, young females, in particular, teenagers and young adults, would starve or use self-induced purging in order to make themselves acceptable. Most people with these two eating disorders usually strive to make everything perfect in their lives. (Anorexia & Bulimia) The victims of these disorders usually get good grades and are highly involved in their community. (Anorexia & Bulimia) Usually they feel like one way to take control of their lives is to control what they eat. (Anorexia &Bulimia) In most cases, anorexics tend to be of normal weight and become withdrawn right before the...
Eating disorders are a common illness in young women and cause more health issues than they seem to realize. It is found in parents as well as in teens. This disorder is a mental and physical illness that has many women basically killing themselves. This ruins your body inside and out. It’s an illness that basically causes other problems within you not only physically but also emotionally. Don’t really understand why women would want to harm themselves and change how they look by doing something so harsh to their body, when all they are really doing is harming there insides and causing more problems. Eating disorders can cause someone to get a gallbladder disease or heart disease even a kidney failure, Why put your body through all of this harm just to look a certain way, when at the end you’re still not satisfied?
Eating disorders are described as an illness involving eating habits that are irregular and an extreme concern with body image or weight. Eating disorders tend to appear during teenage years, but can develop at any age. Although more common in women, eating disorders can affect any age, gender or race. In the United States, over 20 million women and 10 million men are personally affected by eating disorders. There are many different causes of eating disorders such as low self esteem, societal pressures, sexual abuse and the victims perception of food. Eating disorders are unique to the sufferer and often, their perception of themselves is so skewed, they may not be aware they have an eating disorder. Media, for quite some time now, has played a significant part in eating disorders. Magazines with headlines ‘Summer Body’, or ‘Drop LB’s Fast!’ attract the attention of girls who may be insecure with themselves. Television productions such as the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show or American’s Next Top Model, show airbrushed and photoshopped women who have body types that may be unachievable. Those who are suffering from eating disorders can suffer dangerous consequences, and it is important to seek help.
An eating disorder is described as “any range of psychological disorders characterized by abnormal or disturbed eating habits”. Most people think eating disorders are only found in women, when in fact 10-15% of eating disorders are found in men. “Up to 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder in the U.S.” As a survivor of an eating disorder I have seen the harmful effects it causes towards the body and the people around you. The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) says that research has found that the public health significance and severity of all types of eating disorders are extremely high and need to be dealt with.
Anorexia nervosa is characterized by a fear of being overweight which results in becoming exceedingly thin. (guide) People with anorexia go to an extreme in abusing the way they diet, over exercise, and purge. When looking for symptoms in anorexia it is slightly hard to tell, for many times people keep their disorder a secret. Once someone starts undergoing this process, people sometimes gain weight rather than lose, which also initiates them to lose more weight. During the period of growth and maturation, anorexia leads to somatic and psychological development and which leads to serious health issues. (journal research) Although many don’t see what is happening, over time they are sev...
The problem with society today is, teens are judged everyday on their weight; they are either “too fat” or “too skinny”. Every body type is different, some people may not be able to gain or lose weight; Judging someone based on their weight is a huge problem in society today; when someone comments on ones weight it causes someone to do damage to their body, such as mental and physical health problems. Judging someone based on their weight is a huge problem, when someone comments on ones weight it is most common to make them feel less of a person; it could lead to eating disorders or harming oneself.
“Watch where you’re going fat ass!”. Quoted from the famous 2004 movie, Mean Girls, a high school girl hollers this at main character, Regina George, for gaining weight. Being in the middle of the school cafeteria, Regina gets laughed at and ridiculed in front of her peers. While this scene is a laughing stock for people at first watch, it actually does much more for our society than provide a couple of chuckles. It subconsciously instills a line of thinking in adolescence saying that acquiring weight is an abominable thing to do. This is just one example of how the media, in which society views, molds the perception of American beauty in adolescents. The American culture today, through different mediums, displays the message that the ideal female is to be skinny, tall,
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 an eating disorder, 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 are both psychological disorders primarily prevalent in women, anorexia tends to have different diagnostic complexities, symptoms and physiological effects as compared to bulimia.
The predominant symptoms of this illness include; a refusal to maintain a normal body weight, a preoccupation with a perfect body image, an excruciating fear of gaining weight and amenorrhea (absence of three consecutive menstrual cycles.) It’s a fallacy that eating disorders are entirely about being thin and looking good. In fact, eating disorders are severe psychological disorders that require professional intervention. People with eating disorders may portray their lives as being picture-perfect; when, truly, they are the ones who hide all the anguish and misery in that façade. Certainly, not everyone who aims to lose weight develops an eating disorder. There are various underlying factors that contribute to the development of Anorexia nervosa.
Trampling over all other mental illnesses with their mortality rates, eating disorders like anorexia nervosa devour their victims (ANAD). It is a psychological disorder which causes people to have irrational fears about their weight and appearance. Most people assume that anorexia is a deadly mental illness, but that is not true. Anorexia is simply the natural loss of appetite, and does not cause an unhealthy desire to lose weight. Anorexia nervosa is the dangerous eating disorder that causes people to starve themselves. Skinny is promoted in the 21st century, and that is why anorexia nervosa has become even worse in the last decade (“The History of Anorexia Nervosa and Other Eating Disorders”). Making matters worse,
Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder that is most prevalent in adolescent girls and young women. It is distinguished by the loss of at least 15% of the expected body weight (Long). The disease is characterized by the obsessive fear of gaining weight; through this fear, the person engages in dangerous dieting habits that prevent weight gain. According to statistics in 2011 anorexia is categorized as the third most common chronic disease among adolescents, in addition, eating disorders also have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness (Wilkins). Anorexia is a life-threatening disorder that I have only been slightly aware of. I was aware that anorexia was characterized by a serious amount of weight loss however, I never expected two of my best friends’ lives to be ruled by this disorder.
In today’s world anorexia is a highly known eating disorder that people have several assumptions about. It is no secret that Anorexia is spreading through our society like wild fire. The statistics have increasingly soared through the last decade and more people are becoming concerned with the dangerous issue. “It is estimated that 8 million Americans have an eating disorder – seven million women and one million men”, and that “One in 200 American women suffers from anorexia” (DMH). Many suggest that anorexia is a disease that can be passed down through generations, but others like, Sharlene Nagy Hesse-Biber, author of “The Spread of the Cult of Thinness”, argue that this is an eating disorder that is a result of self infliction. There are several different approaches when considering how to label Anorexia that should be brought into consideration. Findings show that anorexia nervosa should be categorized as a type of an eating disorder, not as a disease.