Eating Disorders/Body Image - Exam 4 Flashcards
Eating Disorder definition
a persistent disturbance of eating or eating-related behaviors that results in altered consumption or absorption of food
** have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness
Background Info of Eating Disorders and College Students
- 95% of people with eating disorders are 12-26 years old
- 91% of women on college campuses reported attempting to control their weight through dieting
- 58% (of college women) felt pressure to be a certain weight, 83% dieted for weight loss, 44% of the 83% were “normal” weight
- over 50% of teen girls use unhealthy weight control behaviors (fasting, vomiting, smoking/vaping, etc.)
Scale for Body Image Assessment?
Numbered scale with images like in lab 4
Trends on the body image scale
- large spacing between markers for women who score a “high” measure of distorted eating behaviors
- small spacing between the markers for women who score a “low” measure of distorted eating behaviors
- 30% of women choose an ideal body shape that is 20% underweight (on avg)
- 44% of women choose an ideal body shape that is 10% underweight
The Types of Causes/Origins of EDs
- (bio)logical
- (psych)ological factors
- social/sociocultural
Bio Causes Explained
EDs are thought to have a large genetic component
- 50-80% heritability
- 56% concordance rate for identical twins and 5% for fraternal
Psychological Causes Explained
Anorexia is associated with perfection and control as well as family pressures
Bulimia is associated with low self-esteem (35-78% also meet criteria for depression)
Social Causes Explained
- girls are pressured to be skinny/beautiful, men are also pressured to be muscular
- media images and societal values place this on people
Anorexia Nervosa DSM Criteria
- (severe) restriction of intake leading to significantly low body weight
- intense fear of gaining weight
- disturbance in body image - feeling of being fat even if they are emaciated
Anorexia Prevalence
- affects 0.5-1% of U.S. women and girls
- 10:1 woman to man ratio
- 5-20% of people with it will die from complications related to it
- thought to be most prevalent in wealthy, post-industrialized nations (US, western Europe), but there is some debate on that
- same with higher SES
Bulimia Establisment
- identified since 1979 with a big research focus in the past 20 years
- vs. anorexia which has been a thing since the middle ages
Bulimia Criteria
- recurrent binges
- recurrent compensatory behaviors
- self-esteem unwarrantedly based on weight, size, shape
- NOT anorexic
recurrent binges definition
eat large amounts of food (in private), lack of control, can’t stop
recurrent compensatory behaviors definition
- purging, fasting, etc
- also vomiting, laxatives, enemas, diuretics, periodic fasting, excessive exercise
Bulimia Prevalence
- 1-2% of young adult women
- about 80% of patients are female
- typically begins in adolescence (rare to happen before pubery or after 40 y/0)
- many people appear to be average body weight
- related to Binge Eating Disorder
Binge Eating Disorder Definition
classified by bingeing food, not purging
related to Bulimia
Treatment of Eating Disorders
multi-disciplinary care
family-based therapy
individual therapy
multi-disciplinary care explanation
psychologists and medical professionals work together to limit potential medical complications and help the patient
family-based therapy explanation
really important to address the family unit (especially for teens)
individual therapy
works to change negative cognition about self-health and how it’s attached to food/eating, looks at underlying causes
Ways to Combat Unhealthy Body Image/Food Beliefs
- avoid commenting on the appearance/weight of others
- avoid commenting on the amount someone is eating/not eating
- practice non-judgmental listening
- avoid shaming/blaming yourself/others, instead encourage positive self-talk
- avoid offering simple solutions
- be aware of the media you are consuming and what it perpetuates
- encourage others to/take steps to seek professional help
- work to reduce stigma for mental illness
