theagingofanorexia

Anorexia Myths - Fallacies and Mistaken Beliefs

Some misunderstandings about anorexia are simple errors that are easily corrected. Others are more devious because they’re promoted by the person with the eating disorder who doesn’t want others to know about her eating disorder.

6. "Of course I don’t have an eating disorder problem. I’m not anorexic."

Some people struggling with this disease actually believe they are not ill. It is not unusual for some to be completely unaware of their problem and for others to do what ever they can to hide the condition.

7. Low carb diets are healthy.

Any diet that limits an entire group of foods should signal a warning. Any diet that emphasizes excessive consumption of one or two food groups should also be a warning. All foods, to some degree, fit into a healthy diet. Balance, variety and moderation is part of a healthy diet.

8. Laxatives prevent the absorption of calories.

Laxative abuse is common among people who have eating disorders. Some believe that by taking a laxative they can avoid the calories they’re eating. This just isn’t so. Laxatives work in the colon where there is no absorption of calories. Over use of laxatives depletes the body’s fluid balance so weight loss from laxatives generally means dehydration. This can damage the body and its ability to function from electrolyte imbalances and other medical complications. The colon can shut down permanently.

9. An eating disorder is a temporary way to lose weight.

No.. an eating disorder is a disease. It may start with dieting and then get out of control due to chemical changes it produces in the body. It can take over a person’s entire life because many become addicted to the behavior. Even when they know it may be harmful, they’re unable to stop limiting their caloric intake.

10. Fat free food is healthy.

Fat free food is neither healthy nor unhealthy. However, a low-fat or fat-free diet is not healthy. Fat is needed in the diet for the body and the brain to function well. The fact is daily healthy eating should include about 25% of calories from fat.

I hope the explanation of these fallacies and myths is helping you deal with who ever you may know that has an eating disorder. It’s important to understand what someone who is anorexic may be thinking to hide the condition. It’s also important for you to feel comfortable with what you know about the disease so that you can have a conversation about the disease without feeling anxious.

I have a few more myths about anorexia that I’ll cover in my next post.

To your well balance health.

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky provides content and information products for business and health care professionals who are marketing their services and products.

www.theagingofanorexia.com

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5 Myths About Anorexia

Anorexia is a very serious disorder. Unfortunately, there are many misunderstandings connected with the disease sometimes making it difficult to diagnose and acknowledge the disease. Here are 5 common misconceptions about anorexia.

1.Individuals suffering from anorexia can be easily identified.

Extreme thinness is certainly the most obvious characteristic of anorexia. When the disease is advanced, the person will also have very dry skin, thinning, brittle hair, and bluish fingertips.

Keep in mind, however, everyone who is skinny is not anorexic. Thinness may be an inherited body type or the person could be going through some medical treatments.

2.We can count on physicians and other healthcare professionals to discover and diagnose anorexia.

That just doesn’t happen. Most physicians aren’t trained thoroughly in eating disorder issues so they’re not going to recognize them. Secondly, most don’t have time during an office visit to question the patient about the possibility. Third, even if they did question the patient, the chances are very good patients will lie about their eating habits because they don’t want to be discovered.

My sister was a master at lying about her food intake. At times she almost had me believing all her gastro problems. Her family certainly believed everything she said. She was good; her lies were very convincing.

3.Parents are the cause of their child’s eating disorder.

Not true. Three months before she died, and the word anorexia was finally acknowledged by family, my sister blamed my mother for her eating disorder; something about my mother criticizing the width of her hips. It certainly wasn’t my mother’s fault although what she said when my sister was in her 20s didn’t help. There are too many factors that contribute to the development of anorexia – peer pressure, media influence, and perfectionism. I suspect low self esteem was on the top of my sister’s list.

4.Only the rich and famous can afford to be anorexic.

Of course you know this isn’t true because none of you knew my sister! The rich and famous make headlines when they’re labeled as anorexics but it’s estimated that 10 million Americans struggle with the disease. And apparently anorexia is an equal-opportunity disorder – diverse cultures, religions, ethnic groups and socio-economic groups are represented.

5.A person who eats regularly doesn’t have anorexia.

Not necessarily so. Keep in mind that deception is an active part of life for anorexics. Often, anorexics will play with their food, push it around the plate, hide pieces in a napkin, feed food to the dog - anything rather than eat. The point is they are taking in a lot less calories than they require.

I’ll cover more myths in my next post.

In the in-between time let me know the misconceptions about anorexia that you see. Scroll down to Comments and describe them in the blank window.

To your healthy lifestyle,

Ruthan

www.theagingofanorexia.com

www.upsideofaging.com

www.balanceyourhealth.com

Ruthan Brodsky helps healthcare professionals market their services with content marketing.

Adult Female Anorexics Increasing in Numbers

I browsed through a couple of popular magazines while getting my hair cut last week and glazed in awe at the very thin, well toned bodies of Madonna, Teri Hatcher, and Jane Fonda. No one is getting the message. Women continue to face these unrealistic images of how they should look as they age. As a result they are spending more time and more money to counter the effects of getting old.

Ten years ago you didn’t hear much about women in their 30s, 40s, or 50s being anorexic. Either the issue wasn’t talked about or the condition wasn’t as evident. Apparently the data has changed significantly in the last five years.

"Some treatment centers are reporting that 50% of patients are now 40-plus," says Trisha Gura. She’s the author of the new book (April, 08), Lying in Weight: The Hidden Epidemic of Eating Disorders in Adult Women.

The Desparate Housewives Effect

Women responding to the thin, sexy characters depicted in the show “Desperate Housewives" is having a growing impact on women in their thirties and forties. More women of this age are being treated for eating disorders and many are blaming the TV show.

Women are saying they feel greater pressure to be thinner as they get older, to look youthful regardless of age, and to take whatever steps are needed to achieve all of this. Aging gracefully has fallen out of fashion.

Most of us know people who have weight and diet challenges. We have friends who are constantly on a diet, friends who never seem to eat, and friends who take pills – lots of pills. That doesn’t mean, of course, these friends have an eating disorder, but their patterns of behavior could easily lead to one.

Researchers are now finding that younger women and middle aged women share many of the same triggers that lead to eating disorders such as low self esteem and high anxiety. Menopause, however, increases the middle-aged woman’s negative perception of her body and the possibility of succumbing to compulsive eating or dieting. 

It appears that the circumstances and triggers for anorexia are very personal and varied regardless of age, Some find social pressures for appearance to be their cause for compulsive behavior. Others report that their appearance and their perceptions about their ability to perform at work are tightly linked. The fact that some women might have spent decades without treatment also speaks to the lack of resources and understanding.

To understand anorexia, we need to examine the context of a particular person’s disorder and make sure there are resources available to him or him.  We also need to pay more attention to the messages we send our children, personally and through the media. If we know how these patterns of low self esteem and negative appearance develop, maybe we can figure out how to stop them.

Would love to have your thoughts on this topic.  Share your comments with our readers by scrolling down to comments and writing in the blank box.  Or send me your story by email to ruthanb@balanceyourhealth.com

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To your successful lifestyle,

Ruthan

Self-Image Problems Revealed in Documentary

The film is called "America the Beautiful". I haven’t seen it – it debuted in New York. It’s a movie about America’s image issues, about its eating disorders and about its modeling industry.

Darryl Roberts asked 200 women in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, if they felt attractive. Only two said yes. That means 99% of women feel unattractive? Whoa… something is very wrong.

Roberts is a former entertainment report on Chicago TV. The movie was reviewed by James Snyder at The New York Sun late July. He also interviewed Roberts. The New York Sun The bottom line for Roberts: this misery of poor self image is encouraged by the entertainment and clothing industries, as well as cosmetic companies and plastic surgeons looking for new customers.

The film distinguishes between his interviews of women to the maneuvering of advertising campaigns to create unrealistic expectations for women. He contrasts this even deeper by focusing on Gerren Taylor, a 12-year-old hit model today who exuded self confidence until she, already a very skinny diet-thin teenager, was told to slim down.

He also interviews parents of children who died because of eating disorders and listens to them argue that eating disorders are underreported. He finds out that medical examiners don’t list eating disorders as the cause of death.

I can vouch for that; the underreporting is across ages! My 70-year old sister’s death as listed as ‘pneumonia’. She weighed 76 pounds and was anorexic.

Other findings reported in the documentary:

• 400 ingredients have been banned from use in cosmetics throughout Europe while only 10 are being regulated by the FDA in America.
• The world of cosmetic surgery is not well regulated. It takes very little training for and MD to become a plastic surgeon.

He also concludes that the magazines make no effort to hide what they’re doing because it’s the air brushed photos that display the perfect female image that sell.

Apparently Roberts has had problems selling his film. It created a huge buzz in Dallas, he had to open in Chicago without a distributor but it created enough buzz again that the distribution agents came to him.

I’m going to look for this film when it comes to Michigan. Wouldn’t miss it!

To your successful health … and self-image.

Ruthan Brodsky

I work with small businesses and health care professionals marketing their

products and services with content.

www.theagingofanorexia.com

www.upsideofaging.com