How to combat increased rate of eating disorders

In contemporary society, so many people who have eating disorders; some conscious of their condition, while others accept it as "normal."

Psychological issues deteriorate and the risk of developing eating disorders rises when weight loss becomes more of a priority.

Particularly for women, our society imposes unrealistic standards for body weight and denigrates individuals who do not meet them.

Trendy clothing, peer pressure, and some sports have all helped to raise the prevalence of eating disorders.

An important contributing factor to the emergence of eating disorders is body dissatisfaction.

Even though not everyone who is unhappy will develop an eating disorder, everyone who has one is unhappy.

Some people develop an obsession with losing weight, and they start to see a typical healthy body weight as being excessively overweight. Their weight loss efforts intensify to a hazardously unhealthy level.

Numerous factors, including societal, psychological, and maybe neurochemical ones, contribute to the development of eating disorders. At least some of the problem lies with the excessive pressure to be skinny.

The eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa affect girls and young women primarily, and can occasionally compromise their physiological functions.

A girl who is anorexic may experience amenorrhea, which can subsequently progress to infertility in adults.

How then do you recognise some eating disorders? 

Being really skinny and still having a strong desire to reduce more weight

Self-starvation is a frequent symptom of anorexia nervosa.

Such individuals possess exceptional self-control to precisely regulate servings of low-calorie items in the face of hunger.

They weigh themselves repeatedly throughout the day to validate any potential pound gain. The overestimation of one's own body fatness is a key component of the anorexia nervosa diagnosis.

Some people deprive themselves of food, while others binge eat and then purge through self-induced vomiting or laxative abuse.

A feeling of losing control when eating during each episode

A sensation of being unable to stop eating or regulate what or how much one eats.

Bulimia nervosa patients eat in regular intervals, such as every two hours.

They consume more food than the majority of people would throughout the same time period and under comparable conditions.

Bulimia nervosa affects more men than anorexia nervosa does.

Bulimic habits are covert, which makes it challenging to diagnose the issue. This is due to the fact that the victims always conceal during binge episodes.

Other persons have unidentified eating disorders that share some of the same traits as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, which are dangerous to a person's well-being but do not meet the criteria for those diseases.

General tips for combating eating disorders

• Never restrict food amounts to below your estimated energy requirement.
• Frequently eat. Between meals, eat some wholesome snacks. A person who eats frequently never allows hunger to influence their meal choices.
• Establish a sensible weight goal based on healthy body composition if you aren't at a healthy weight.
• Give yourself enough time to complete the task. At a predetermined time, a respectable loss of extra fat can be accomplished.

Remember that eating problems affect physical performance if you participate in sports. Focus on good nutrition as a crucial component of your training, just as crucial as good form.

Learning to value one's individuality may be the best safeguard against these diseases. People stop sacrificing their health for conformity once they become aware of and honour their body's true physical needs.

Finally, if you need support getting treatment, ask for discreet assistance.

Lucy Chege is a registered and licensed nutritionist based in Kenya, proficient in medical nutrition therapy.

Twitter: @LucyChegeM