sses, recent research indicates that some people may have a genetic predisposition toward eating disorders. Studies also show that there is often a connection between eating disorders and other illnesses such as clinical depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and obsessive-compulsive diseaseEating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a combination of long-standing behavioral, emotional, psychological, interpersonal, and social factors. Scientists and researchers are still learning about the underlying causes of these emotionally and physically damaging conditions. There are some general issues that contribute to the development of eating disorders.While eating disorders may begin with preoccupations with food and weight, they are most often about much more than food. People with eating disorders often use food and the control of food in an attempt to compensate for feelings and emotions that may otherwise seem over-whelming. For some, dieting, bingeing, and purging may begin as a way to cope with painful emotions and to feel in control of one's life, but ultimately, these behaviors will damage a person's physical and emotional health, self-esteem, and sense of competence and control.Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by a refusal to eat enough to maintain a healthy body weight. People with anorexia develop an intense, irrational fear of becoming fat even though underweight. This fear escalates to the point where intentional starvation is used as a means to achieve the desired thinness. People with this illness truly believe they are fat, even though others can see that they have become painfully thin, even emaciated. Anorexia nervosa has the most severe consequence, with a mortality rate of 0.56 percent per year (or 5.6 percent per decade) (Sullivan, 1995), a rate higher than that of almost all other mental disorders (Herzog et al., 1996). Like all eating disorders, it tends to occur in pre or post pu...
