Overview

An eating disorder is a compulsion to eat, or avoid eating, that negatively affects both one's physical and mental health. Eating disorders are all encompassing. They affect every part of the person's life. According to the authors of Surviving an Eating Disorder, "feelings about work, school, relationships, day-to-day activities and one's experience of emotional well being are determined by what has or has not been eaten or by a number on a scale." Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are the most common eating disorders generally recognized by medical classification schemes, with a significant diagnostic overlap between the two. Together, they affect an estimated 5-7% of females in the United States during their lifetimes. There is a third type of eating disorder currently being investigated and defined - Binge Eating Disorder. This is a chronic condition that occurs when an individual consumes huge amounts of food during a brief period of time and feels totally out of control and unable to stop their eating. It can lead to serious health conditions such as morbid obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Dealing With Emotional Eating Day by Day

Emotional eating or eating with your feelings will hinder your weight loss management. People who are trying to lose weight need to get to the root of why they are prone to emotional eating. If they can get passed this urge, they stand a better chance of losing the weight and keeping it off.

Most of the time, the urge to eat something has little to do with being hungry. And with emotional eating, those urges are cravings for foods that do little in the way of adding nutrition. They are comfort foods like potato chips or ice cream. When emotions take precedence, no other food will curb that need. It doesn't take much to trigger the urge either, and this is what makes losing weight so difficult.

Emotional eating adds pounds which only causes more emotional eating, and if the person doesn't get to the root of it, she will never be satisfied with her weight. Self-esteem will drop and she won't like herself very much. The feeling of guilt after every piece of cake will only bring on more emotional eating.

Emotional eaters need to get to the root of their problems. They need to discover the reasons for those urges. And those reasons vary from one person to another.

Keep a diary that includes how you feel that day and why you feel that way, as well as what you've eaten. In time you'll notice on good days, your food intake may be less. Or the bad food intake may be less. The pattern it reveals will help you recognize your urges.

Once you've recognized when those urges arise, you may be able to find another way to relieve it, like taking a walk, deep breathing, drinking a glass water. Do something that involves working with your hands. Anything that will divert your attention from the need for food.

Keep healthy alternatives in your food pantry. Don't shop on emotional days or on an empty stomach. If you do, your cart will be full of comfort foods.

Don't feel guilty when you slip up. It happens to everyone. Focus instead on a thinner, healthier you. Stay positive. Smile and stay active even on days you don't feel like smiling or moving. Don't validate the emotions with food, but validate them by working through them. Know they're there and you'll have a better chance of losing the weight and keeping it off.



Autor: Eric L Knouse

Eric has been writing articles online for nearly 2 years now. Not only does this author specialize in diet, fitness and weight loss, you can also check out his latest website which provides desktop pc deals.


Added: January 5, 2010
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/

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