National Eating Disorder Awareness Week
2 min read
By Camryn Hetrick
All eating disorders are serious. Thats why a week out of February is devoted to eating disorders. This year’s annal eating disorder week is February 26 – March 3rd, 2024. One can learn more about the week at www.nationaleatingdisorders.org. Some questions some may have are what kind of eating disorders are there and how do they affect the body? The most common kinds of eating disorders are Anorexia nervosa, Bulimia nervosa, B.E.D, and Pica. This information was found on healthline.com.
Anorexia nervosa often involves the fear of gaining weight. If you struggle with anorexia nervosa someone cuts out calories and most likely avoids certain kinds of foods. There are three different kinds of Anorexia nervosa, binge eating, restricting, and purging. Restricting is when one loses weight through dieting, fasting, or excessive exercise. Binge eating and purging both may include eating large or very little amounts of food, and purging may involve vomiting and laxatives.
Bulimia nervosa is when someone eats large amounts of food in a limited amount of time. A binge eating episode normally continues until they become painfully full while still restricting calories. Purging afterwards is the same as Anorexia nervosa. Next is B.E.D which stands for binge eating disorder. B.E.D is often eating large amounts of food in secret until full, despite not being hungry. Feelings of stress, shame, guilt, and disgust tend to occur when thinking about binge eating. It’s very similar to Bulimia nervosa except with a B.E.D one doesn’t restrict calories or purge. Last is Pica. Pica is eating things that are not considered food. So, eating dirt, ice, cornstarch, and even laundry detergent. This was all found on Healthline.com
When interviewing David Reith he said, “I know that eating disorders are difficult to get over. I feel bad for those who have a severe eating disorder.” When interviewing Q Patsy she said, “I think eating disorders suck. I have a lot of resources for people struggling with them. I think they need to remember that they are not alone. It’s rough, yeah, but they can get through it. Open up to someone you trust who can help you and reach out to professionals to seek help. You don’t have to suffer alone. You’re not any less of a person for struggling with eating, we all struggle, it’s a part of being human.”
The point of National Eating Disorder awareness is to teach other people about eating disorders. To honor this, share facts about eating disorders and show support to those who have one. If you or someone you know struggles with an eating disorder, be sure to get help. If you are unsure of how to get help check out nationaleatingdisorders.org they have a page dedicated to resources to help.
