An eating disorder is a problem that millions of men and women around the world face. These individuals have issues with the way they look. They are afraid of gaining weight so they employ certain techniques that can be harmful to the body with the intention of losing weight. What are these techniques?
For example, for anorexic patients, they would rather starve than eat. They think that eating that piece of bread will result to them gaining a pound or two. They have the tendency to not eat sufficient amounts of food. Atrophy of the muscles (muscle breakdown) can be expected because the body is so starved for nutrition that it turns to its muscles for nourishment. The patient will, indeed, become thinner. Anorexic patients exhibit that familiar skin and bones appearance.
Bulimic patients have a different way of managing their weight. They may induce vomiting to get rid of food that they just ate. They may drink laxatives too to eliminate what they just ate. The purging comes after the binge eating. Bulimic patients eat so much food and very quickly, they will purge it out so that the body does not have a chance to absorb the calories and nutrients. It is considered less life-threatening than anorexia nervosa but it is still a medical issue that must be addressed.
If you have someone in your family who is anorexic or bulimic and you are looking for the best eating disorder treatment facility, you will have to consult with a doctor and a psychiatrist to ensure that the best care will be provided to the patient.
For anorexic patients, medical assistance and treatment must be initiated right away to save the patient’s life especially if the patient is really underweight. It can be difficult to persuade an anorexic patient to seek treatment because the underlying problem with anorexia is control. Most patients do not understand the gravity of the situation because they still think that they are fat or obese even if they are already very underweight. What they see in the mirror is different from reality.
Eating disorders are deadly because if immediate treatment is not performed, patients can suffer grave consequences such as stroke, heart attack, and other fatal occurrences due to the lack of sufficient nutrition. Many have already died due to complications. One of the most famous anorexic patients is Karen Carpenter. She died due to the complications of not receiving sufficient amounts of nutrition.
Look on the Internet or talk to eating disorder specialists to find out about these eating disorder facilities.