Eating Disorder Anomalous eating habits involving too less or too much dietary intake that may lead to physical or mental harm to an individual is known as Eating Disorders.

Classification of Eating Disorders

According to Walsh and Sysko (2009) Eating Disorders are most commonly classified into three categories

Anorexia nervosa (AN)

Bulimia nervosa (BN)

Atypical eating disorder or Eating disorders not otherwise specified (EDNOS)

Anorexia Nervosa is a medical condition associated with exceptionally low food intake, less bodyweight and an apprehension of increase in the body weight in the affected person. The affected person usually exhibit transition from severe limitation to the binge eating behavior.

Bulimia Nervosa is a medical condition in which the effected individual binges on food and his repeated episodes of eating become out of his control. Hence, this disease is associated with obesity in the affected person. (Marcus and Wildes, 2009) Later on, the individual try to counteract this behavior by utilizing different methods like vomiting or taking laxatives in order to avoid weight gain. But, the reverse practice (a move from binge eating into eating limitation) is less common.

Atypical eating disorder or EDNOS includes modifications of above mentioned disorders, but with sub-threshold indicators. This disorder possesses major medical severity that does not fulfil the indicative criteria for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa both. More than half of the cases of eating disorders fall into this category. (Thomas, Vartanian and Brownell, 2009)

Current Theoretical Perspectives mental disorder

The description of the central control of appetite can be used to acquire an in-depth knowledge of eating disorders. An easy way is to understand three components of nervous system. Foremost is the Homoeostatic System which is mainly controlled by the brain stem and hypothalamus that incorporate peripheral metabolic markers with details from the gastrointestinal tract to influence levels of appetite, fullness, and autonomic nervous activity. Then there is Drive System, that holds distributed neural circuitry in the mesolimbic cortex and striatum that has conducting inputs from sense organs and neural constituents that are involved in processes of learning and remembrance. (Thomas, Vartanian and Brownell, 2009) This system records the reward associated...

Finally, there exists self-regulation system, within which a kind of let say top down control contextualizes hunger within life objectives, significance, and meaning.
Anomalous variations in these systems may lead to risk of developing or developing and sustaining eating disorders. A theory advocates that these disorders may occur due to persistent deficits in self-regulatory systems. In addition, eating disorder patterns influence the drive system, for instance, a boost in binge eating has found to be associated with subsequent food limitation, gastric drainage (vomiting), anxiety, and discontinuation of highly appetizing food- and some animals with a craving for food. (Pallister and Waller 2008) It was observed that binge eating may even follow intervals of food withdrawal. Furthermore, they had a tendency to go back to their previous eating habits after some time, and may exhibit cross-tolerance towards cocaine and alcohol. (Calero-Elvira, Krug, Davis, Lopez, Fernandez-Aranda, Treasure, 2009) These behavioral changes take place due to the changes in the levels of dopamine and upload (chemical transmitters). Lastly, the reaction to alterations in patterns of food consumption of the putative homoeostatic system may develop other eating disorders like, anorexia nervosa which is often linked with creating slimness, but the case is other way round for bulimia nervosa or binge eating disorder.

Treatment of Eating Disorders

Medical complications

Eating disorders mostly develop in adulthood, but the highest occurrence has been observed between 10 and 19 years of age, that may result in disturbing optimum growth and development. (Walsh and Sysko, 2009) Majority of path physiological complications associated with eating disorders may reverse with improving dietary habits or discontinue anomalous dietary and purging behaviors. (Eddy, Dorer, Franko, Tahilani, Thompson-Brenner and Herzog, 2008) Nevertheless, a number of physical damages may prove to be life-threatening, like extreme vomiting or laxative and diuretic abuse may lead to electrolyte imbalance in the body. (Calero-Elvira, Krug, Davis, Lopez, Fernandez-Aranda, Treasure, 2009) Moreover, nutritional insufficiency augments the possibility of developing cardiac arrhythmias and repeated infections. Symptoms of increased health risk are indicators of the extent to which an immediate professional…