Newspapers / Rocky Mount High School … / Feb. 1, 2002, edition 1 / Page 3
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tf)c #rpt)()on ® €arlp Spring 2002 newy/c>p(4xu>n/ 3 Society’s Disease Mandy Smith, Staff Writer A girl is getting ready to step on die scales. She’s ner vous about her weigjit so she stuffed her underwear with rolls of coins and has been drinking glass after glass of water. She wants people to think she is maintaining or even gaining wei^t She’s liiding a problem Over eight million people in the United Stales have an eating disorder. Eat ing disorders usually start in tlie teens but may begin as early as age eight Ninety per cent of the people are women. In fact, the typical profile of a person with an eating disor der is Middle-class, Cauca sian female.Everyone’s ques tion is... what causes eating disorders? There is no an swer to this question. “Most people think it has to do with being thin and wanting to lose weigjit but thinking they’re fat doesn’t usually have anything to do with it”, says Carolyn Mosley, a marriage and fam ily therapist at Coastal Plain Hospital and Counseling Cen ter. Possible causes of eating disorders include feeling stressed out or upset about somethingin their life, or feel- ingthe need to be “in control”. Low self-esteem can contrib ute as well. “Having low self esteem forms when you’re a young child. Many people with eating disorders have been sexually abused or have had some sort of emotional disturbance, says Mosley. Society also put a lot of pres sure on people to be tlun. This pressure can contribute as well. Recent studies on eating disorders have discovered they could be biological. Re search implicates genes and brain chemistry. New in- sigjits into tlie roots of eating disorders are helping re searchers piece together how tlie disorders evolve and may lead to improved treatments. The two main types of eating disorders are anor exia Nervosa and Bulimia. People with Anorexia are ob sessed vnth being thin. They don’t want to eat and are afraid ofgainingweigjit Tliis fear causes them to become obsessed about hovf many calories they take in or how much fat is in their food. They take diet pills, laxatives or water pills to lose wei^L They may exercise too much. Anorexics usually thinf^ tfie/re fat even thoujji tfie/re very thin; so tfiin that diey look as though they’re sick. If an orexia isn’t treated it could cause stomach and heart problems, irregular periods or no periods, fine hair all over the body, including the face and dry or scaly skin. Bulimiais eating a lot of food at once, called binging, and then throvring up or using laxatives, called purging. Af ter a binge, some bulimics fast, or over exercise, to keep fi'om gaining weight People with Bulimia may also use water pUls, laxatives, or diet pills to “control” tfieir wei^L They often try to hide their binging and purging, llicy may hide food for binges. “What people don’t realize about the binge-purge tecli- nique is that you basically stay the same weigjitwhile ruining your insides”, says Mosley. Bulimia can cause stomach and heart problems, kidney problems , and dental prob lems from throwing up stom ach acid and dehydration. Scars and calluses could be found on the hands due to sticking their fingers down their throats during the purge process .Both of the disorders have warning signs; includ ing, uimatural concern about the body, even if the person is not overwei^t, obsession with calories, fat grams and food, use of any medications to keep from gaining weight More serious warning signs may be harder to notice because people who have an eating disorder try to keep it secret Watch for throvring up after meals, refusing to eat or lying about how much was eaten, fainting, overexercis- uig, not having periods, ui- creased anxiety aboutweight, and denying tliat there is any- tliing wrong. It’s healthy to watch what you cat and to exercise. Wliat isn’t healthy is wony- ing all tlie time about your weigjitand what you eatl Eat ing disorders are serious and even deadly if left untreated. If you or, someone you know is suffering from and eating disorder, itis important to talk to a professional as soon as j)ossible. The following arc some resources thatvrill help you find the information and support you need: Bulimia/Anorexia Self Help Hotline: 800-448-3000 Eating Disorders Awareness and Pre vention (EDAP): 800-931-2237 or www.edap.org Eating Disorders Recovery Online: www.edrecoveiy.com RBC Centura BC
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