What eating disorders are there?

Anorexia

Anorexia (an-o-REK-see-uh), also called anorexia nervosa, can be a life-threatening eating disorder. It includes an unhealthy low body weight, intense fear of gaining weight, and a view of weight and shape that is not realistic. Anorexia often involves using extreme efforts to control weight and shape, which often seriously interfere with health and daily life.

Anorexia may include severely limiting calories or cutting out certain kinds of foods or food groups. It may involve other methods to lose weight, such as exercising too much, using laxatives or diet aids, or vomiting after eating. Efforts to reduce weight can cause severe health problems, even for those who continue eating throughout the day or whose weight isn't extremely low.

Rumination disorder

Rumination disorder occurs when a person routinely regurgitates food they have previously chewed and swallowed, re-chews it, and then either re-swallows it or spits it out. This typically occurs within 30 minutes after a meal.

In infants, rumination disorder tends to develop between 3 and 12 months old and often disappears on its own. In children and adults with the condition, therapy can resolve it.

If not resolved in infants, rumination disorder can result in weight loss and severe malnutrition that can be fatal.

Adults with this disorder may restrict the amount of food they eat, especially in public.


Eating disorders

Eating disorders are serious health conditions that affect both your physical and mental health. These conditions include problems in how you think about food, eating, weight and shape, and in your eating behaviors. These symptoms can affect your health, your emotions and your ability to function in important areas of life. If not treated effectively, eating disorders can become long-term problems and, in some cases, can cause death. The most common eating disorders are anorexia, bulimia and binge-eating disorder. Most eating disorders involve focusing too much on weight, body shape and food. This can lead to dangerous eating behaviors. These behaviors can seriously affect the ability to get the nutrition your body needs. Eating disorders can harm the heart, digestive system, bones, teeth and mouth. They can lead to other diseases. They're also linked with depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. with proper treatment, you can return to healthier eating habits and learn healthier ways to think about food and your body. You also may be able to reverse or reduce serious problems caused by the eating disorder.

An eating disorder can be difficult to manage or overcome by yourself. The earlier you get treatment, the more likely you'll make a full recovery. Sometimes people can have problem eating behaviors that are similar to some symptoms of an eating disorder, but the symptoms don't meet the guidelines for a diagnosis of an eating disorder. But these problem eating behaviors can still seriously affect health and well-being.

Many people with eating disorders may not think they need treatment. One of the main features of many eating disorders is not realizing how severe the symptoms are. Also, guilt and shame often prevent people from getting help.

If you're worried about a friend or family member, urge the person to talk to a health care provider. Even if that person isn't ready to admit to having an issue with food, you can start the discussion by expressing concern and a desire to listen.

Red flags that may suggest an eating disorder include:

  • Skipping meals or snacks or making excuses for not eating.

  • Having a very limited diet that hasn't been prescribed by a trained medical professional.

  • Too much focus on food or healthy eating, especially if it means not participating in usual events, such as sports banquets, eating birthday cake or dining out.

  • Making own meals rather than eating what the family eats.

  • Withdrawing from usual social activities.

  • Frequent and ongoing worry or complaints about being unhealthy or overweight and talk of losing weight.

Bulimia

Bulimia (buh-LEE-me-uh), also called bulimia nervosa, is a serious, sometimes life-threatening eating disorder. Bulimia includes episodes of bingeing, commonly followed by episodes of purging. Sometimes bulimia also includes severely limiting eating for periods of time. This often leads to stronger urges to binge eat and then purge.

Bingeing involves eating food — sometimes an extremely large amount — in a short period of time. During bingeing, people feel like they have no control over their eating and that they can't stop. After eating, due to guilt, shame or an intense fear of weight gain, purging is done to get rid of calories. Purging can include vomiting, exercising too much, not eating for a period of time, or using other methods, such as taking laxatives. Some people change medicine doses, such as changing insulin amounts, to try to lose weight.

Bulimia also involves being preoccupied with weight and body shape, with severe and harsh self-judgment of personal appearance.

Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID)

People with ARFID experience a lack of interest in eating or a distaste for certain smells, tastes, colors, textures, or temperatures.

Common symptoms include:

  • avoidance or restriction of food that prevents the person from eating enough calories or nutrients

  • eating habits that interfere with typical social functions, such as eating with others

  • weight loss or poor development for age and height

  • nutrient deficiencies or dependence on supplements or tube feeding

ARFID goes beyond common behaviors such as picky eating in toddlers or lower food intake in older adults.

Moreover, it does not include the avoidance or restriction of foods due to lack of availability or religious or cultural practices.

Binge eating disorder (BED)

BED often involves eating large amounts of food rapidly, in secret, and until uncomfortably full, despite not feeling hungry. Feelings of distress, such as shame, disgust, or guilt, may occur when thinking about binge eating behavior.

People with BED have symptoms similar to those of bulimia or the binge eating subtype of anorexia. This includes eating large amounts of food in relatively short periods of time and feeling a lack of control during these episodes.

However, people with BED do not restrict calories or use purging behaviors, such as vomiting or excessive exercise, after a binge eating episode.

People with BED may eat more ultra-processed foods than whole foods. This may increase the risk of complications such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.

Purging Disorder

Purging disorder is an eating disorder that involves “purging” behavior to induce weight loss or manipulate body shape. Purging can mean a number of things, including:

  • self-induced vomiting

  • misuse of laxatives or medications

  • excessive exercise

  • fasting

While it’s not as well-known as other eating disorders, purging disorder is a recognized eating disorder. It’s categorized as an “Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder.”

It’s critical to remember that eating disorders are among the deadliest mental health conditions. They can cause significant harm to both physical and mental health.

Pica

Pica involves eating things that are not considered food and that do not provide nutritional value. This may include, ice, dirt, soil, chalk, soap, paper, hair, cloths, wool and so much more.

Pica is most frequently seen in individuals with conditions that affect daily functioning, such as:

People with pica may have an increased risk of:

Night Eating Syndrome (NES)

Night eating syndrome (NES) is when you wake up several times in the middle of the night to eat. You may eat a large amount of your daily food intake after dinner and before breakfast.

Occasional night eating is common. Depending on how your day went, you may eat your evening meal later, have a late-night snack or wake up hungry if you missed a meal. But night eating syndrome doesn’t just happen every once in a while. It happens several times per week, often with multiple wakeups per night. Night eating syndrome is an eating disorder that happens alongside a sleep disorder (insomnia).

If you have night eating syndrome, you don’t sleep through the night. Your body wakes you up so you can eat. You crave sweets and foods high in carbohydrates. You may feel like you won’t be able to fall back to sleep if you’re not full. In the morning, you don’t feel rested or hungry for breakfast. This can affect your mood and your ability to perform well at work or school