What is an eating disorder?
An Eating disorder is the term given to describe someone’s inability to consume food in normal amounts, in regular intervals, and from healthy sources. Eating disorders is an umbrella term that includes issues like food restriction (e.g. anorexia nervosa), compulsive eating (e.g. binge eating disorder), and
There is no one-way of healthy eating, and brief periods of abnormal eating patters would not be considered an eating disorder. For example, if someone were to go through a religious fast, or if someone were to participate in a hot-dog eating contest, this would not be an eating disorder. One of the crucial tenets of an eating disorder is that it causes significant distress to one’s life, and puts the person’s health in jeopardy.
Eating disorders are different than patterns of disordered eating. Disordered eating can be considered a set of unhealthy behaviors that are not as severe as a full-blown Eating Disorder. For example, compulsive snacking to cope with emotional struggles, or moderately-extreme calorie counting to lose weight can be disordered eating in that the behavior carries with it significant distress and emotional weight. Here, food takes on a different meaning than what it is intended to be; a source of fuel for the body. Instead, food is seen as something bad that must be controlled, or something that solves emotional problems. This is a disordered way of looking at food. While problematic, this is less severe and life-threatening than an Eating Disorder.
How are eating disorders treated?
To successfully treat an eating disorder, a few critical components must be included in a comprehensive treatment plan. These would include aspects of addressing the Body, the Mind, and the Environment.
First, there must be an assessment as to the physical effects of the Eating Disorder and that which are currently taking place. If the person is physically at risk, or their life is in jeaopardy, and inpatient treatment option is typically best. If someone is relatively high-functioning and may be in recovery, but are still needing help and support, working with an outpatient Nutritionist and Health Coach may be helpful. Eating Disorders directly impact physical health, and health professionals must be included in the treatment plan.
Second, as Eating Disorders are a mental illness, a comprehensive treatment plan for Eating Disorders must also include behavioral health professionals. Understanding the emotional and psychological roots to one’s struggles with food are critical in the treatment approach. Counselors, therapists, Psychiatrists, and other helping professionals can work together as a collaborative team to assist clients to overcoming their Eating Disorder.
Lastly, it is important to also address the environmental factors of Eating Disorders. This may include one’s family environment, their work life, their school life, their social support, their religious community, and any other thing affecting and affected by one’s Eating Disorder. Here, Family therapists can help families learn how to best support their loves one. Additionally, helping professionals may assist their clients to reevaluate their friendships, their work/school environment, and how they interact with the world around them. All of these external factors may be entirely relevant to addressing an Eating Disorder comprehensively.