Teenage Eating Disorder - Causes and Types

All teenagers want to look attractive, they want to be popular, and to fit in with others. The standards for looking attractive isn't always easy in today's society. Girls have a harder time than boys because girls are judged by their appearance much more than boys are. Physical attractiveness in females is based on a lot of things, pretty features, nice hair a good complexion, and a Miss America body.

Today a Miss America or "well-proportioned" body is interpreted to mean thin. Many teenage girls are unhappy, and embarrassed with their bodies. Because of pressures or problems in their own lives, many girls try to lose weight thinking it will bring success and happiness.

Eating disorders are now appearing at much younger ages. The average age used to be sixteen or seventeen. But has now dropped to fourteen for girls, and has been reported even in fourth graders. This eating disorder craze has the potential to cause stunted growth and unhealthy bodies, and even premature death if not treated. One study of eating disorders found that of over 2,000 nine- and ten-year-old girls, around 40 percent reported trying to lose weight. Many girls and boys today are grossly overweight and indeed need to lose some weight, but for the majority, especially girls are caught up in the crazy fad that thin is in. The worrying of being too fat starts early , a survey of 12-13 year old girls showed nearly half of the group did not like the way they looked. Boys did not seem to be as concerned as girls about their looks or weight.

There are three types of eating disorders. Anorexia nervosa, is when a person has an unfounded fear of getting fat and can actually starve them self to death if not treated . Another type of eating disorder is bulimia. A person eats large amounts of food and then forces them self to throw up, or takes laxatives, or uses means to avoid gaining weight, like running and strenuous exercise programs. The last is compulsive eating disorder also sometimes called food addiction and is characterized by an obsessive/compulsive relationship to food and eating when not even hungry.

The American Anorexia Bulimia Association (AABA) reported over five million Americans suffer from eating disorders, 5 percent are adolescent and adult women and 1 percent are men. They also report that about one thousand women will die each year from anorexia. 5-10 percent of long-term anorectics are reported to die from this disease each year. If these statistics are true, then this means that anorexia has the highest death rate of all mental health illnesses!

Hollywood and movies have impacted our teenagers, the Hollywood craze of thin is beautiful has blinded our young people, they do not realize that the majority of the entertainment world has personal trainers, gyms in their homes, and nutritionist experts to help them lose weight safely. Our young people are not aware to this and, in most cases, see them to be the standards of how girls should look. We need to get this message across to our children and educate them on the dangers of poor eating habits.

Most young people develop an eating disorder in their pre-teen years and 80% of girls reported dieting by the age of 16. Today children are reaching puberty at an earlier age, and are far less equipped to understand the dangers of poor eating habits and the harm it can do to their young bodies.

My hope and prayer is if you are a young person, and are reading this, that you will not let an eating disorder ruin your life. God loves you.

Autor: Glenn Hanson Glenn Hanson
Level: Basic
Glenn is the owner of Hanson Painting Service and has been successfully operating this off line business for 42 years with his wife and sons. ... ...

Glenn Hanson is a licensed preacher, contractor, artist, Internet marketer and author of many sermons and articles.

He is the owner of http://teenageeatingdisorder.org, a resource for eating disorders causes, types, and treatment.

Added: May 6, 2009
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/