Are You at Risk for Having an Eating Disorder?
Why is it that some girls are perfectly content with their bodies while others are never satisfied? It’s more than just an imagined sense of self-hatred – there are many influences that determine whether or not you’ll be prone to eating disorders in your life.
The first is gender. Although more women than men suffer from eating disorders, there’s an alarming rise in the number of young males experiencing the same bulimic or anorexic tendencies that their female counterparts do.
Age counts, too. No one is immune to eating disorders – they’ve been known to surface during the middle age years. But for most victims, the disorder gets rooted earlier – in their teens and young twenties.
If you are close to someone who has an eating disorder, like a loved one in your family, your risk increases. You’d think it would influence you in the opposite way, but instead it sometimes makes it socially acceptable.
People suffering from compulsive disorders like OCD sometimes get struck by an eating disorder because it’s one more way they can control their environment. Likewise, women who suffer from depression or anxiety report an increase in eating disorders.
If you’re the type of person who can’t get enough exercise, or someone who competes in athletic competitions, then you might be prone to developing an eating disorder because you falsely believe it will enhance your performance.
And we can’t forget the peer influences that are so critical to the outlook we have about ourselves. When you’re constantly criticized by a parent or sibling who tells you that you need to go on a diet, even in a joking manner, it can take an ugly turn into an eating disorder that wreaks havoc on your body.
If you fit any of these profiles, then you’ll want to take action to prevent yourself from developing or further involving yourself in an eating disorder lifestyle. Talk to your doctor about the issue and find out what a healthy weight and diet would be for your specific body type.
Instead of listening to the destructive voices that influence your concerns, work on building your confidence and socializing with positive people who don’t criticize you on a regular basis.
Avoid getting mired in the fantasy that you ought to look just like the Supermodel on the cover of this month’s Vogue magazine. Even the most beautiful models will tell you how thankful they are for the advance in technology that allows the editors to remove their own imperfections.
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