Eating Disorders Affect All Ages

Eating Disorder

In conjunction with National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, February 26 through March 4, Arkansas Children's Hospital urges families to watch for signs of an eating disorder. This year the theme for the annual observation is "Be comfortable in your genes," emphasizing that a person's size and shape are genetic and poor eating habits can severely damage their health.
Millions of Americans are reading food labels these days; some are trying to eat healthier while others hope to avoid being overweight. Our society's obsession with weight stems from a number of factors; the growing number of obese Americans, images of celebrities who are unrealistically thin and the millions of people who fall in between those categories and suffer from a poor self-image or lack of self-esteem. While our attention on obesity can be helpful, the concern over body image also can get out of control, sometimes leading to unhealthy eating disorders that can be life-threatening. Eating disorders affect people of all ages, from children in kindergarten to their grandparents. Approximately 10 million girls and women struggle with some type of eating disorder, as do one million boys and men.
"An eating disorder develops as a result of a combination of several factors, some of which include genes, biochemical changes in the brain, specific personality traits such as obsessive compulsive tendencies and/or perfectionist tendencies, family dynamics and socio-cultural expectations regarding weight and appearance," says Maria Portilla, M.D., medical director of the Adolescent Eating Disorder Clinic at Arkansas Children's Hospital and associate professor of Pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine. "Patients with eating disorders usually have an unrealistic view of themselves and focus a lot of their attention on their weight and appearance. Since this is a mental health illness, the patient needs treatment with a mental health professional."
Portilla says eating disorders diagnosed in the Adolescent Center at Arkansas Children's Hospital include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and other disorders that don't place the patient in either of the first two categories. Those who have an eating disorder may see themselves as overweight, when in reality they are dangerously thin and malnourished. The symptoms of anorexia nervosa, one of the more common eating disorders, include excessive weight loss, excessive exercise, avoiding fats and carbohydrates or avoiding meals altogether, fatigue, fainting or depression. Signs of bulimia nervosa include eating large amounts of food in a short time period followed by purging, excessive exercise after a meal, staying in the bathroom for long periods of time after a meal, a frequent sore throat or an obsession with food or weight.
"An adolescent or adult with an eating disorder needs treatment, preferably with a team of professionals that are communicating on a regular basis," says Portilla. "These professionals should include a mental health professional, such as a psychologist and psychiatrist, and a physician with expertise in eating disorders who can evaluate and follow the medical complications. Typically, these physicians are pediatricians, family practice physicians or internists." A healthy weight and body image can be achieved through proper diet and physical exercise, keeping in mind that adolescents and adults who are unrealistically thin are damaging their own psychological and physical health. It is estimated that 20 percent of those who have an eating disorder will die, secondary to medical complications, from malnutrition or due to suicide.
"An inadequate diet, low in carbohydrates, fats and protein, can lead to several complications," says Portilla. "Some of those include loss of muscle mass, loss of  bone mass (osteoporosis), loss of menstrual periods, which can lead to infertility, hair loss, abnormal sugar metabolism, which can lead to fainting or seizures and abnormal electrolytes which can also lead to seizures or irregular heartbeat that can result in death."
When a diet is low in calories, the patient is prone to being tired, weak, and dizzy. The person's metabolism becomes very low which causes other problems, such as being cold, tired, having problems concentrating, and ultimately dying. The most effective way of helping those with a suspected eating disorder is to encourage them to seek professional help, share information on organizations or Web sites that offer answers about eating disorders and avoid trying to force them to eat. Seeking help for a patient with an eating disorder must begin with a personal step. Treatment and rehabilitation may take months and in some cases years, to break through the psychological setbacks. Given the right medical treatment and social encouragement, those who have an eating disorder can return to a healthy, fulfilling life with high self-esteem and healthy eating habits.
Arkansas Children's Hospital is the only pediatric medical center in Arkansas and one of the largest in the United States serving children from birth to age 21. The campus spans 24 city blocks and houses 290 beds, a staff of approximately 500 physicians, 80 residents in pediatrics and pediatric specialties and more than 3,600 employees. The private, nonprofit healthcare facility boasts an internationally renowned reputation for medical breakthroughs and intensive treatments, unique surgical procedures and forward-thinking medical research - all dedicated to fulfilling our mission of enhancing, sustaining and restoring children's health and development.