Eating Disorders amongst Women 1

Eating Disorders amongst Women: A Review of Literature

Gabriela Miranda

University of Texas at El Paso

Eating Disorders amongst Women 2

Abstract

Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge-eating what do does words really mean. In a

female that has an eating disorder really does not mean anything, it will mean nothing but a

simply things that the world is making up. Now for someone who does not suffer from an eating

disorder will mean more like you are killing yourself slowly thinking that you are helping

yourself be healthier by dieting. It can realize the way it affects the anatomy and physiology

of the female body and how the body itself is asking for help but the victim in in denial. An

eating disorder can be cause by many things but as we live in the 21st century, an eating disorder

is mainly cause by social media because it manipulates the females mind pretty easy and quick.

But hope will always form part of an eating disorder, and even though the victim cannot see it,

family and friends can. Therefore, the treatment stages are hard and each of them have their own

challenge but never say never! A woman can always defeat anything.
Eating Disorders amongst Women 3

Eating Disorders amongst Women: A Literature Review

Perfect. What does perfect really mean? Well if we look in a dictionary we might find a

fancy definition like having all the required or desirable elements, qualities, or characteristics; as

good as it is possible to be. Now if we ask a person what they think the word perfect really

means we would have a variety of definitions, so what happens when we hear words such as the

perfect woman with the perfect body. With what definition do they go with? Most of the

time women will go with the definition that society puts out there in the world, causing most

them to fall in hands of an eating disorder. Eating disorders are serious conditions related to

persistent eating behaviors that negatively impact health, emotions, and the ability to function in

important areas of life. The most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, and bulimia

nervosa.

Sometimes it is really confusing and hard for the people who are around a victim with an

eating disorder to help them or to try and understand why they are going through that. A lot of

information is out there in hospitals and clinics and they give a lot of pamphlets or they try to

make the victim go to recovery sessions but they do not understand that they will not make the

victim change their minds. An eating disorder is a crucial sickness and it takes a lot of time to

learn about it, and understand it. People must be patient and they should not get all desperate

during the process. And we must always remember that an eating disorder can affect anyone and

it can cause anyone the death but it is most likely that between guys and girls and eating disorder

will affect the girl most of the time.

What are the diverse types of eating disorders?

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When an eating disorder is present amongst a female, many times friends or family fail to

notice it because they believe its a way of dieting. There are several types of eating disorders in

the world and most of them can be confused with one another because somehow, they have the

same signs and symptoms. To be able understand the intensity of such aspect, the overall

situation must be clear and known. As said before the most common types of eating disorder are

anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorder.

Anorexia nervosa can be the most famous one amongst all the eating disorders possible

found. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder, marked by an extreme fear of becoming

overweight, that leads to excessive dieting to the point of serious ill-health and sometimes death.

This disorder can start by simply start eating less. At the beginning everything seems normal.

They still eat during the day but they limit themselves in what to consumed which is fine because

thats how most of the time females diet. The victim then starts noticing that consuming less than

what they were eating is not helping, they still see themselves in a negative perspective, so they

decide to cut down more food from their diet. This process goes on until they reach the point of

no eating at all. There are other symptoms following this type of behavior explains the website

Warning signs and symptoms. It says that when a woman is victim of anorexia they will create an

unrealistic image of their own body size. Women with anorexia think that they are fat when

they are actually very thin. Although other people see the sufferer as thin or underweight, it is

impossible for them to see this. They have a severe dread (like a phobia) of gaining weight.

Women with anorexia will do their utmost to avoid putting on weight, since in their mind is the

worst possible thing that can happen. Another symptom of anorexia mentioned is the distancing

from family or friends. Most of the time women who suffer from anorexia rather be alone than
Eating Disorders amongst Women 5

have company who criticizes their way of eating. Making it harder for people who want to help

reach out to the victim.

Bulimia nervosa is the second most common eating disorder amongst women. Bulimia is

an illness in which a person has regular episodes of overeating (bingeing) and feels a loss of

control. Women then uses unusual ways, such as vomiting or laxatives (purging), to prevent

weight gain. It is said that in a way this is the first stage of anorexia, because as time passes the

victim will stop eating, will stop restricting themselves from certain types of food and eventually

will get to the point of suffering from anorexia. Bulimia nervosa consist of two factors, bingeing

and purging. Symptoms of bingeing consist of; Eating much more food in a binge episode than

in a normal meal or snack, feeling that eating cant be controlled once a binge begins, hiding or

hoarding food, making excuses for missing food, or money taken to pay for binge foods, and

eating until the point of physical discomfort or pain. The website types of Eating Disorders

explain that after a binge ends, feelings of self-disgust and shame follow, Women are

accompanied by the compulsion to engage in some method of purging to rid the body of the

extra calories by vomiting, abusing laxatives or diuretics, periods of starving, or excessively

exercising. This is when the purging stage begins. Purging consists of habitually going to the

bathroom immediately after eating or during meals, damaged teeth and gums, swollen salivary

glands in the cheeks (chipmunk cheeks), persistent sores in the throat and mouth, sores, scars or

calluses on the knuckles or hands caused by self-induced vomiting, scratchy or raspy voice

quality, and misuse of ipecac syrup to induce vomiting. According to The British Medical

Journal (1974) it is known that most of the time, victims who suffer from bulimia They often

make excuses to cover up their behavior or explain increasingly longer absences from work,
Eating Disorders amongst Women 6

school or family and friends. Some eating disorder treatment experts consider this to be a

discrete form of bulimia nervosa, which they refer to as exercise bulimia or exercise addiction.

It is hard to keep up with anorexia and bulimia nervosa when a woman really knows how

to hide the signs, but as time goes on the symptoms start to be more noticeable and that when one

can seek out to them and offer some help because without any treatment women can suffer long-

term effects and even death can occur.

How does an eating disorder affect the anatomy and physiology of the female body?

The female body is something more than amazing. The female body was created in such a

beautiful way that even another human being can live in it up until nine months. But when an

eating disorder takes place in the female body some of these functions cant be accomplished.

When a female eats healthy and in a regular basis everything seems to function well. The food

goes through what its call the digestive system, this is where all the food is process and the

nutrients go to the places the body is needed them. It is also known that when a female its eating

right it will be less likely for her to fall into depression, anxiety or even social isolation.

So, this is how the body works when its under the sickness of an eating disorder. First, the

body will start to feel weak, sleepy and frustrated. If the body hen doesnt have the right amount

of food some stomach pain can happen in addition to malfunction in the bowel movement.

Eating disorders can damage the bowel muscle and nerve endings. This may eventually result in

permanent constipation; chronic under-eating causes the muscles of the small and large intestine

to shrink. Therefore, victims often suffer from stomach aches, bloating and acid reflux.

Osteoporosis then falls into place. Osteoporosis is a condition with low bone density and

consequently reduced bone strength, therefore their risk of breaking a bone (fracture) is
Eating Disorders amongst Women 7

increased. Since the bone is not getting the sufficient nutrients the body changes its hormone

production in response to it. Levels of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-1), a hormone related to

the growth hormone and levels of estrogen are reduced, and levels of cortisol are increased. in

addition to having osteoporosis, females can also lose their menstrual cycles. This is because the

levels of estrogen are reduced extremely in some occasion it can lead to infertility; this is known

as when the reproductive system is not working correctly and reproduction cannot take place.

In the article, Eating disorders in women and children: prevention, stress management, and

treatment, second edition. Boca Rato, another way an eating disorder can affect the anatomy of a

woman is through Anemia. Anemia is a condition marked by a deficiency of red blood cells or of

hemoglobin in the blood, resulting in pallor and weariness. Anemia results especially from a diet

with low iron content it is very common for anorexic or bulimic people to get rid of red meat

from their diets because they think that it has too high of a fat content. Low iron intake can make

you feel weaker and more tired than normal. Eating disorders can also cause heart problems.

Problems include leaking heart valves, low blood pressure, and abnormal heart rhythms.

Additionally, as the body loses muscle mass, it loses heart muscle at a preferential rate so the

heart gets smaller and weaker. It gets worse at increasing the circulation in response to exercise,

and your pulse and your blood pressure get lower. The cardiac tolls are acute and significant, and

set in quickly. Heart damage is the most common reason for hospitalization in most females with

an eating disorder.

Eating disorders not only affect the body physically but it also affects it emotionally.

Females who are victims of and eating disorders can suffer from depression, anxiety and even

suicidal thoughts. The path of an eating disorder is really lonely and most of the times women

end up giving up because they feel like no one cares about them and no one has the intention in
Eating Disorders amongst Women 8

really helping them.

Figure 1. This is a more simple and small diagram that explains how an eating disorder affect the

anatomy and physiology of a female.

Can social media cause eating disorders amongst women?

Eating Disorders amongst Women 9

Throughout ages women have always find it hard to fit into society because somehow,

they always have some standards to meet. Up to this day women are still struggling. An eating

disorder is not a normal sickness. This sickness cannot be transmitted through fluids or touch,

this sickness starts developing with the influence of other people. Most of the time, women who

get an eating disorder is because they are not satisfied with their body, they have a really low

self-esteem and they are easy to manipulate.

Now days social media is full of pictures of women posing in such an attractive way. The

types of women we see in this type of pictures usually consist of traits such as being skinny, thin,

nice makeup, hair well-done and a perfect tight outfit. It is known that 80% of women use social

media on a daily basis, including Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat. This means that

the immense majority of women are regularly exposed to a variety of messages about body shape

and size. A study found out that the more time females spent using social media, the higher the

chances of developing a negative body image and an eating disorder. There are several ways

social media influences a womans body image and eating behavior. They include: peer

influence and competition, low self-esteem, and unrealistic weight-loss goals.

Many times, women find themselves doing something that they do not want due to the fact

of peer pressure or peer influence. Lets depict a scenario, there is a group of friends where all

the girls have an eating disorder, either bulimia or anorexia except for one. The probability of

that girl getting an eating disorder would be almost 90% since all her friends consist of having

one. Eventually the girl will follow that order. This scenario is the same with social media, social

media may be a new avenue in which females compare themselves to others. In addition to that,

a victim that already has an eating disorder can shared picture on their social media of how

great she feels, making other women think that there is nothing wrong with thinspiration,
 Eating Disorders amongst Women
10

anorexia or even bulimia, and attaining those physical ideals as a challenge, further entrenching

unhealthy behaviors.

As said in the beginning low self-esteem contributes quite a lot when a woman has an

eating disorder. Social media has a potential to contribute to low self-esteem, leaving users with

painful thoughts, worthless emotions and incompetence as they compare themselves to others. In

the video Thinspiration: Eating Disorders and Social Media it explains how some females felt

bad, and disgusted about themselves after spending a certain amount of time on social media.

With that said, females can think that there is such a thing such as a perfect body or life just by

looking at those pictures and they can make themselves believe that the do not measure up to the

standards that society has for them. It also mentions that depression can be a significant impact

after spending so much time on social media, women can start to feel lonelier making them think

that its because of the way they look that men do not show interest in them so that also leads

them to an eating disorder.

There are seven billion people in this world and there might be similarities between each

other but they are not the same. When it comes to females comparing themselves to one another,

if you think about it, it is quite an irrelevant thought. They cannot be two similar girls even twins

have some characteristics that distinguish themselves from one another. In other words, females

put too much pressure in themselves trying to be like the woman in the picture that social media

has posted a million times by taking extreme measures like getting an eating disorder and they

might never look like that woman. For example, a thigh gap isnt attainable if a teen girl or

young woman has slim hips that dont allow her thighs to be far enough apart to create the now-

famous space. Their bone structure and body type prevents many young females from reaching

their social media-influenced goals in a healthy way explains the website Elements behavioral
 Eating Disorders amongst Women
11

health . And even then, sometimes females do not realize that the pictures that these models put

up on social media go through a series of photoshops sessions so they can create the perfect

body image.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

Figure 2. This figure explains how social media has created more women to fall into an eating

disorder. It gives some statistics of how many of them have been hospitalizes and how the

numbers just keep increasing.

What are the treatment stages for women with an eating disorder?

As stated before and eating disorders is not a sickness that women can get rid of with some

pills, injections or with peope telling them to stop because it is not healthy. Depending for how

longs a woman has been dealing with an eating disorder, it will dependent how long can the
 Eating Disorders amongst Women
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treatment take; even though it is usually a constant battle through life so they wont fall back

again into the same habits. There are five stages a woman must go through during recovery. The

first stage is pre-contemplation, then contemplation, followed by preparation and determination,

stage four would be action and finally the last step consist of maintenance.

The first stage is known to be one of the hardest one in recovery because in this stage the

victim is in denial. Women who are in the pre-contemplation stage have no intention of changing

their behavior to become healthier. They might think that having an eating disorder is completely

normal and they might not see it as a problem when other people call for their attention. Women

who are in this stage are known as resistant or in denial. According to the book, Eating

disorder recovery handbook: a practical guide for long-term recovery by Davies, N., Bacon, E.,

& Buckroyd, J. reasons for pre-contemplation can fit into the four Rs: reluctance, resignation,

and rationalization. In this stage the therapist will start approaching the victim with self-analysis

questions, reflections, and open-ended questions. With this approach the victim will begin to

consider that a problem or matter of concern exists.

Stage two of recovery consists of contemplation. In this stage the victim is aware a

problem exists and seriously considers, action, but has not yet made a commitment to action.

Here a woman who has an eating disorder might have the intention of stopping so she can get

better but she realizes that this sickness is kind of like an addiction. She will be open to

suggestions and will try to take as many information as she can but still make no changes in her

behavior. Almost like if she is waiting for a magic moment or an irresistible piece of information

to make the decision for her. In this stage the therapist will take it slow and assign the victim to

recognize the good and less good of their problem behavior. This is a critical point because is
 Eating Disorders amongst Women
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when the victim starts to open up and talks about what really happen in order for her to fall into

an eating disorder.

Stage three is all about preparation. In this stage the victim has intentions in taking action

soon, even though this stage is a combination of behavioral and intentions the positive vibes are

always present. This is a relatively transitory stage that is characterized by the woman making a

firm commitment to the change of process. Perhaps the victim has all the intentions in taking

action but shes still in doubt for this reason the therapist helps her with by telling her how

healthier shell be later on in the future and how things can turn around in the good way. In other

words, they start to motivate her little by little with no pressure. By the end of this stage the

victim will have a plan in how she wants to take action.

The next step in recovery for a female with an eating disorder would be Action. This step

is the hardest one of all of the stages because in this step is when she will start to make real

changes in her behavior and the chances of her quitting are real big because she might think it is

really hard. An example of this situation could be the movie To the Bone. It depicts how a 20-

year-old anorexic girl that goes through various recovery programs to fight and confront her

addiction, while learning to accept herself as how she is. She is struggling in this stage because

even though she has all the intentions to get better, her body is asking for something else and the

body is acting a completely different way. This period will usually last about one to six months

depending on how advanced the eating disorder is. In this stage the victim must be really patient

and not get desperate. Ambivalence and commitment are still and issue but with the help of

support groups and the therapist being available 24/7 it is possible for the victim to succeed this

stage.
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Finally, the last stage is maintenance. In this stage the victim has made a sustained change

where a new pattern of behavior has replaced the old one. This new behavior is firmly

established in the victims life and the threat to a relapse will be less likely. Even though she

might be out of the danger zone it is crucial for her to keep attending therapy or support groups

so she can know that she is not alone. Books like Beating eating disorders step by step: a self-

guide to recovery might be recommended because it outlines new and positive ways of dealing

with eating disorders for people living with eating disorders and their families. And it can also

emphasize the importance of taking things at her own pace. If there is a stage crisis the victim

will contact the therapist and try to maintain this stage. If somehow the female relapses she will

re-enter the contemplation or preparation stage.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this literature review answers frequent questions of what an eating disorder

is, how can an eating disorder affect the females body, does social media makes females get an

eating disorder and what are the recovery stages for a woman with an eating disorder. This

sickness has been around for years but with the 21st century medicine it is easier to detect this

problem and help women get to treatment as soon as possible. We must consider that having an

eating disorder is not a way that women diets, it is deathly and cause more damage than good.

This sickness can hurt the female and also family and friends. We must be on the lookout and

help every possible woman that we can.

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Adapted from DiClemente, 1991; Prochaska and Norcross, 1994

http://stjohnsriverrhn.org/pdfs/programs-provider-stages-of-change-precontemplation.pdf