Health and weight maintenance has become a priority for a lot of Americans. With mainstream media glamorizing unrealistically thin models and actors, the average American feels they don’t measure up and become obsessed with losing weight. This desire to fit in and look the best has become a driving force that is leading to bad habits that can become eating disorders. There are three main types of eating disorders. Bulimia Nervosa is characterized by eating large amounts and then purging afterwards such as vomiting or abusing laxatives. Anorexia Nervosa is characterized by losing weight no matter what the cost through self-deprivation. Lastly, the other common type is binge eating where the person has an uncontrollable urge to overeat and cannot stop. All of these represent serious problems and they should seek help from their health care provider.

Key Points:

• Bulimia sufferers engage in binge eating episodes, following by using laxatives, diuretics and other methods to remove the food from their body.
• Anorexia nervosa sufferers have an extreme fear of gaining weight, and usually avoid food entirely by starving themselves.
• Methods such as aromatherapy, acupuncture and naturopathy are ways used to help cure these disorders.