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Types of eating disorders
Eating disorders are a group of related conditions involving extreme food and weight
issues, but each disorder has unique symptoms and diagnosis criteria. The common
eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating and pica.
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Anorexia nervosa
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by an abnormally low body
weight, an intense fear of gaining weight and a distorted perception of weight. It
involves restriction of energy foods, which leads to signifi cantly low body weight in
relation to the individual’s age, sex, and height. This restriction is often secondary to
an intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, despite the individual’s low body
weight. Anorexia nervosa is most likely a well-known eating disorder. It generally
develops during adolescence or young adulthood and tends to affect more women
than men. People with anorexia nervosa generally view themselves as overweight,
even if they are critically underweight. They tend to constantly monitor their body
weight, avoid eating certain types of foods, and severely restrict their calorie intake.

Bulimia nervosa
This is an eating disorder characterized by consuming a large amount of food in
a short period. Thereafter, the person tries to induce vomiting or use diet pills and
other medications, fast, or do excessive exercise to avoid weight gain. If it is not
treated, bulimia nervosa can lead to nutritional defi ciencies and may have fatal
complications. Bulimics are usually ashamed of their behaviour and tend to hide
this condition from others.

Binge eating disorder (BED)

This is an eating disorder characterized by consuming large quantities of food in a
short period, similar to bulimia nervosa. However, individuals with this condition
do not engage in vomiting, excessive exercise, or other behaviours. Individuals with
this condition lack a sense of control over eating behaviour. They usually eat rapidly
until they feel uncomfortably full, even when they are not physically hungry. These
people are often accompanied by feelings of guilt, shame and distress. Individuals
with BED report feelings of embarrassment on the quantity of food consumed,
and thus will often refuse to eat in public. These people often consume excessive
amounts of food and may not make nutritious food choices. This may increase the
risk for obesity and non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and type 2
diabetes.

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