Eating Disorders Flashcards
What does the DSM-5 mention as the 4 primary categories of eating disorder?
- anorexia nervosa
- bulimia nervosa
- binge eating disorder
- OSFED - other specified feeding and eating disorders
Why is the language used to talk about eating disorders so crucial?
You should never comment about the body of a patient with an eating disorder
What are the 2 main features of anorexia nervosa?
- active maintenance of low body weight
2. extreme shape and weight concern
What is the weight and BMI like of someone with anorexia nervosa?
In adolescents and children, weight is less than 85% of their expected weight
Or they will have a BMI of 17 or less
What is restricting anorexia?
This involves eating very little on a daily basis
What are the 2 types of binge in binge/purging anorexia?
Objective binges - this would be recognised as a binge by a healthy person
Subjective binge - involves an anorexic person eating something they hadn’t planned
What is the main age of onset of anorexia nervosa?
What percentage of people this age present with it?
Age of onset peaks at 15 and 18 years
0.5% of girls aged 15-18 present with anorexia nervosa
What percentage of anorexia nervosa cases are seen in females?
95%
What are the severe physiological and psychological effects underlying anorexia nervosa?
- starvation affects all organ systems and organs begin to shrink
- cognitive impairment may occur due to shrinkage of the brain
What are the behavioural signs of anorexia relating to body image and behaviour?
- obsessive behaviour
- not being truthful about how much weight they have lost
- underestimate the severity of the problem
- pre-occupation with body weight
- distorted perception of body shape/weight
- fear of fatness or pursuit of thinness
What are the psychological behavioural signs of anorexia nervosa?
- rigidity in thinking
- setting high standards and being a perfectionist
- social withdrawal and isolation
- depression and anxiety
- compromise of educational and employment plans
What are the behavioural signs of anorexia nervosa relating to food and diet?
- strict dieting
- excessive calorie counting
- hiding food
- eating only low calorie food
- missing meals
- avoid eating with others
- cutting food into tiny pieces to make it less obvious they have eaten little
What are the other behavioural signs of anorexia nervosa?
- vomiting or misusing laxatives (purging)
- taking appetite suppressants (diet pills)
- telling lies about what they have eaten, pretending they have already eaten
- finding it difficult to think of anything other than food
Why is is difficult to diagnose an eating disorder?
Normally a few of the behavioural signs are observed, but it is very difficult to actually identify an eating disorder
What is the affect of anorexia nervosa on the stomach?
The stomach shrinks due to starvation
It begins to physically hurt after only eating a small amount
What are the physical signs of anorexia nervosa that affect mood?
- getting irritable and moody
- difficulty concentrating
- difficulty sleeping and tiredness
- feeling dizzy
What are the physical signs or anorexia nervosa that can be visibly noticed?
- severe weight loss
- constipation and bloating
- growth of downy hair on the body
- hair falls out
- swelling of the feet, hands or face
What are the physical signs of anorexia nervosa that cannot be visibly noticed?
- stomach pains
- feeling cold/having a low body temperature
- low blood pressure
- periods stop or are irregular
- weakness/loss of muscle strength
What was the Minnesota experiment?
The calorific intake of men was halved, and they had no previous experience of eating disorders
What behaviour was shown by the men in the Minnesota experiment?
They became preoccupied with food
Some developed bulimic responses, some would hide food and eat secretly and some would take hours to eat meals
What happened to the men in the Minnesota experiment, once they had access to food?
They ate continuously but continued to binge even after they reached their optimal weight
How does an individual with bulimia nervosa feel about their condition?
They feel very out of control of their condition
What behaviour is observed in bulimia nervosa?
- recurrent binge eating, where large amounts of food are eaten very quickly
- compensatory behaviour (e.g. vomiting, fasting)
- there is an extreme shape and weight concern
What must the binge frequency be for someone to have bulimia nervosa?
At least once a week for 3 months
What is the normal age of onset for bulimia nervosa?
What % of people this age are affected?
The age of onset tends to be late adolescence to young adulthood
It affects 1-3% of girls aged 18-25 years old
What percentage of people with bulimia nervosa are female?
Why might this figure not be accurate?
95% of people with bulimia nervosa are female
Men are less likely to prevent with symptoms