What Are the Patterns of Disordered Eating and Distorted Body Image?
• Disordered Eating Eating and exercise behaviors that interfere with leading a healthy and fulfilling life. They may not be life-threatening, yet they may cause suffering and require intervention. • Eating Disorders Dangerous patterns of disordered eating. The three most common are: • Anorexia: Restrictive eating or purging (vomiting, over-exercising, using laxatives) that causes a person to be underweight. This is accompanied by intense concern about weight and/or appearance. • Bulimia: Binging (eating a large quantity of food) and purging (vomiting, over-exercising, using laxatives) that does not result in the person being overweight. • Binge Eating Disorder: Binge eating without the use of purging. People with this disorder are often overweight. • Body Image Disorders Body dysmorphic disorder primarily affects men. Those with the disorder are obsessed with making the body more muscular and trying to fix perceived flaws that others don’t see. All of the disorders described above can
