What is bulimia and its consequences. Five irreversible health effects of bulimia

19.05.2020

For more than a decade, skinny models, singers and actresses have been watching us from almost any cover of a fashion magazine, from TV screens. Only recently have many people become more tolerant of the fat, they cease to be equal to the thin ones, loving themselves for who they are. Indeed, because of such a cult of thinness and harmony, many girls, girls and women have already suffered. Some have suffered from constant malnutrition - anorexia - for the sake of losing weight, while others have developed a disorder like bulimia, which is as hard to tolerate as anorexia.

Bulimia is a condition of a person when he eats up a large amount of food, practically not feeling full, after which he tries in all possible ways to get rid of the contents of the stomach, causing vomiting. Other ways to prevent calories from being absorbed include enemas, the use of diuretics and laxatives, exhausting physical activity and other methods that are dangerous to health.

The overwhelming majority of patients are women who have an unhealthy desire to lose weight or an insane fear of gaining extra pounds, but at the same time they do not want to switch to rational nutrition. Instead of choosing an individual diet, it seems easier for them to gorge on sweets, hamburgers, rolls and the like for their own pleasure, and then they can simply induce vomiting and get rid of all the calories eaten at once.

Many women are sure that in this way of eating they do not harm their health, and, of course, their forms. But it's not for nothing that bulimia has other names - bulimia nervosa or bulimia. After all, this condition is directly related to psychological problems that women solve by absorbing food.

The insidiousness of this ailment is due to the fact that it is carefully hidden by the sick, they do not want and are ashamed to tell their loved ones about it, and they themselves are categorically against admitting themselves to be sick and needing qualified help from specialists.

But if bulimia is not treated, then the hour is not far off when a girl or woman who has fallen ill with it will be overtaken, complete lack of self-confidence, a constant feeling of guilt, and greatly low self-esteem. Agree that such consequences of bulimia can in no way be recognized as a positive outcome of deliberate overeating, and then forcibly getting rid of the same food.

Unfortunately, the exact causes of bulimia today remain a mystery. But the predisposing factors can be fashion trends in society, over-focusing on one's own appearance, looking for flaws where they do not exist, features of cultural traditions, unresolved family problems, problems in relationships between people, some problems associated with disorders of biochemical processes in the brain, which - or genetic disorders.

Bulimic can be distinguished from an ordinary person by periodic uncontrolled bouts of overeating, when the refrigerator can be completely cleared of the available products. Bulimic sufferers are very sensitive to even minimal changes in weight, they often go on all kinds of diets with the strictest calorie count, which most often do not give any results, because bulimics resort to "hard days" when all foods prohibited by the diet are swept off the table.

Very often any (even the smallest) nervous experiences end with gluttony when food is used to calm down. Over time, completely insignificant incidents cause a desire to absorb food, thereby calming down, and the amount eaten with each new episode increases. As a result, a person can eat until he literally becomes ill. The only way out is to induce vomiting to relieve the condition after overeating.

External signs by which you can trace bulimia disease are the following:

an overly critical attitude towards any of his actions and towards his personality in general;
hatred of your body, constant guilt, depression;
desire to receive approval from the outside of any of your actions;
excessive exaggeration of its own weight;
reduced or complete lack of self-control.

If you observe something similar in your friends, relatives or acquaintances, it is likely that this is the onset of bulimia disease or is already a direct indication of a developed ailment.

The consequences of bulimia can be disastrous. Few people lose weight with bulimia nervosa, and the reasons for the reverse weight gain are as follows:

even when the stomach is emptied with vomiting, more than half of the calories still have time to be absorbed;
the use of laxatives and diuretics also affects the absorption of calories;
due to a disturbed metabolism, the metabolism slows down greatly, and therefore all calories not spent are converted into fats.

More serious consequences include:

destruction of tooth enamel, frequent cases of caries, periodontal disease;
an increase in the salivary glands often develops;
constant irritation of the throat mucosa due to frequent;
violation of the menstrual cycle;
problems with intestinal motility;
endocrine disorders;
sharp fluctuations in weight, it can change dramatically within 15 kg (both in the direction of losing weight, and, conversely, gain).

Treating bulimia nervosa

Since bulimia is a complex mental disorder, the treatment should be comprehensive. In addition to psychological discomfort, patients with bulimia nervosa are usually diagnosed with more than one concomitant disease that has arisen due to regular violent vomiting.

Therefore, in the treatment of this ailment, drug therapy will be required, and conversations with the patient in order to identify the features of his behavior and character, and psychotherapeutic assistance. It is especially important to understand the reasons that caused such a critical attitude towards oneself, to identify the features of the thought processes of a bulimic person and to correct them.

An important step in therapy is to control the amount of food consumed. The doctor must identify the factors that provoke an increase in food intake, and find effective ways to eliminate such annoying moments. Diet therapy is carried out, in which the most rational diet is selected strictly individually for each patient.

It is equally important to correct the patient's self-esteem in the direction of its increase, to assess the ability and ability of the patient with bulimia to communicate with people, build interpersonal relationships, and form a positive attitude towards himself and the people around him. Often they resort to family psychotherapy: this is necessary so that close and dear people also enter the course of the problem, help and support the patient on the path of his recovery.

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Bulimia nervosa is one of the most common eating disorders. Together with anorexia, she kills every year Eating Disorder Statistics more people than any other type of mental illness.

Every 62 minutes, at least one person dies from the effects of an eating disorder.

In order not to miss the development of this mental illness, it is important to know it in person.

What is Bulimia

The term bulimia comes from two Greek words that translate to "bull" and "hunger." "Bovine hunger" is something indomitable, a desperate craving for food, a desire to quickly fill the stomach with all the food that is just around. This is what bulimia nervosa is all about. Bulimia nervosa.

A person suffering from this disease regularly loses control over their appetite and overeats monstrously. Realizing this, he seeks to get rid of swallowed food: artificially induced vomiting, enemas, the use of laxatives and diuretics, attempts to go on an excessively strict diet for a while are used. However, bouts of binge eating recur over and over again.

Effects Bulimia nervosa can be different, up to the most difficult:

Accelerated destruction of tooth enamel due to the fact that stomach acid regularly gets into the mouth.
and loss of teeth.
Swelling and soreness of the salivary glands due to repeated vomiting.
Stomach ulcer.
Ruptures of the stomach and esophagus.
Problems with bowel movements. The body gets used to enemas and cannot cope with the removal of waste products by itself.
Dehydration with all its consequences.
Arrhythmia.
Increased risk of heart attacks.
Decreased libido (sex drive).
Loss of interest in life, suicidal tendencies.

How to recognize bulimia

This is not as easy to do as it is in the case. While anorexic tends to appear overly emaciated, bulimic victims are generally of normal weight.

Bulimia nervosa can often only be predicted by indirect symptoms:

Excessive concern with their own weight and appearance.
A distinct disregard for fat people. For someone who suffers from bulimia, being overweight seems to be a shame, a sign of low social status, something unpleasant and infectious.
Repeated gluttony. Sometimes a bulimia victim eats unthinkable amounts of food.
In between - attempts to go on a diet, refusal of certain foods, vigorous exercise in the gym.
Love for laxatives, diuretic drinks, weight loss products.
The urge to go to the bathroom or toilet immediately after eating.
Red eyes. When vomiting is artificially induced, the vessels are overstrained, the capillaries burst.
Dental problems: They hurt, break down and fall out.
Complaints of sore throat: the result of the same vomiting.
Heartburn, indigestion,.
Irregular periods.
Mood swings.

Each of these signs separately is not a reason to worry. But if you count at least 5-6 of them, this is a dangerous signal.

How to treat bulimia

As soon as possible. The sooner you see a psychotherapist, the easier it will be to overcome the disorder.

A psychotherapist will help you correct your eating behavior. And if necessary, she will prescribe antidepressants or other drugs that will make it easier to control hunger.

You may need to consult a nutritionist. He will teach you how to count calories and choose. And this will relieve the patient from the fear of gaining extra pounds.

Unfortunately, bulimia is a difficult condition to say goodbye to. It often happens that, even after being cured, people from time to time return to their old habits. And only thanks to willpower they begin to eat right again.

What are the causes of bulimia and how to prevent it

Why this disorder develops, scientists do not yet know. Most likely, several factors play a role at once:

with your own body.
Low self-esteem. By the way, it also triggers anorexia.
Perhaps heredity. Bulimia often affects several members of the same family at once, so physiologists do not exclude a genetic predisposition.

Learning to love yourself is important to prevent the development of an eating disorder. Accept your body. More often than not, bulimia begins with stress, resentment, and low self-esteem. At such times, family and friendly support is very important. Do not leave loved ones alone and do not hesitate to ask for help and encouragement yourself. This is the best way to prevent mental health problems.

Bulimia nervosa is a serious eating disorder with psychological causes.

People with bulimia eat large amounts of food and then induce vomiting or take laxatives and diuretics to rid their bodies of food. They may also starve or exhaust themselves with excessive physical exertion to compensate for periods of overeating.

This eating behavior leads to negative consequences for mental and physical health in both the short and long term.

After completing the course, you will be able to fill up in small portions and enjoy food, instead of suffering from guilt after overeating and looking for ways to "clear" your stomach.

The program is designed for 2-6 weeks and is compiled by psychologists individually after diagnostic testing.

List of sources:

Diagnostic And Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition .

Fichter, M. M. and Quadflieg, N. (2016), Mortality in eating disorders - results of a large prospective clinical longitudinal study. International Journal of Eating Disorders.

Ulfvebrand, S., Birgegard, A., Norring, C., Hogdahl, L., & von Hausswolff-Juhlin, Y. (2015). Psychiatric comorbidity in women and men with eating disorders results from a large clinical database. Psychiatry Research, 230 (2), 294-299.

Most people have come across a word like bulimia at least once in their lives. Moreover, in recent years, a lot has been said about the problem that this definition is fraught with, and almost at every step.

It is also quite obvious that many, as a rule, the majority of women are familiar with the problem of bulimia, unfortunately, not by hearsay. But even if you happily escaped such a fate, it is necessary to have a small, but more in-depth understanding of this issue. At least, as they say, for general development.

Bulimia is a word of Greek origin, literally translated it means "bull hunger."

From a medical point of view, bulimia is a mental disorder caused by factors such as:

a sharp excessive increase in appetite, accompanied by bouts of gluttony;
constant preoccupation with food;
a huge fear of the possibility of getting a little fat, as a result of which, after eating, a person tries to rid the stomach of it by any means (causes vomiting, takes laxatives, uses an enema, weight loss drugs, and the like).

According to statistics, a disease such as bulimia affects approximately 10% of women in the age category from 15 to 35 years. But in reality, this percentage is much higher, because women, as a rule, among the patients of their overwhelming majority, know how to carefully hide the ailment they have from others.

The presence of this disease is quite difficult to identify: patients try not to show their increased addiction to food, especially in full view of relatives and friends.

Bulimia is classified into 2 types:

Classic - a person suffering from this ailment is trying at all costs to cleanse his body of food that has entered it: for this, vomiting is regularly provoked, various laxatives and diuretics are used, and the body is cleansed with an enema. The main symptoms of this type are:
- deep depressive state of the patient;
- a constant feeling of guilt and self-loathing;
- unreasonably strict self-criticism and a feeling of loss of control over oneself;
- a completely distorted idea of \u200b\u200bits own weight, of its compliance with the norm;
- a painful need for all the actions of the patient to be constantly approved by the people around him.
Severe bulimia (like stage II anorexia) - the patient also abuses enemas, laxatives and diuretics. In addition, he tries to use behavior that compensates for his actions - actively, to the point of complete exhaustion, he is engaged in physical activity, or he is intensely hungry. This form of bulimia requires urgent hospital treatment. The typical symptoms of severe bulimia are as follows:
- strong and sharp fluctuations in body weight (up to 10-15 kg up and down);
- increased soreness and fatigue of muscle tissue;
- gum disease and tooth loss;
- chronic irritation of the throat area;
- inflammation and swelling of the parotid glands.

Common signs of the presence of this disease are:

at one meal a person tries to eat a very large amount of food. Moreover, the food taken is absorbed very quickly, practically not chewed, swallowed in whole pieces;
immediately after a meal, a trip to the toilet follows in order to induce vomiting and get rid of what was eaten as soon as possible;
the patient becomes lethargic, he lacks energy;
there are problems with digestion, general dehydration of the body occurs;
frequent, sometimes completely unreasonable change of mood, as well as increased isolation and secrecy;
skin problems appear, partial destruction of tooth enamel occurs, salivary glands increase on the cheeks;
the most important thing is that the patient stubbornly refuses to admit that he has a problem.

The consequences of a disease such as bulimia can be very unpleasant and detrimental to health.

If a person does not stop in time, he may develop such diseases as:

periodontal disease, caries, erosion of tooth enamel;
gastritis, stomach ulcer, impaired renal function and pancreas;
violation of the menstrual cycle, ovarian dystrophy;
various metabolic and endocrine disorders, esophageal bleeding.

It should be realized that getting rid of bulimia is not so easy. There will be no effect of treatment as long as the person suffering from bulimia does not admit that he has this disease. He must fully understand the situation: the desire to be healthy must come from within.

But to deal with this problem alone is very difficult and almost impossible. The sufferer must be “fueled” by powerful support from friends, relatives, or “colleagues in misfortune”.

Since there are deep psychological problems at the root of bulimia, the treatment of this problem is based on psychotherapy. The best results are obtained by a combination of individual and family psychotherapy, diet therapy and medication (sedatives and antidepressants). Moreover, the earlier treatment is started, the higher its effectiveness will be.

In addition, it can be caused by a whole combination of different factors. Some of the most common causes are:

As in the case of anorexia, psychological complexes that often appear during the period of mental formation of a young organism. Often, bulimia appears not as a separate disease, but as one of the symptoms accompanying anorexia nervosa.
Borderline personality disorder, which manifests itself as impulsivity, low self-control, mental instability, unstable connection with reality, anxiety and desocialization.
The consequence of improper and immoderate diets, when a person, after a long abstinence, literally pounces on food like a beast and cannot do anything with himself.
A consequence of some diseases of the endocrine or central nervous system.
Complexes "from childhood" - extremely strict upbringing, peer abuse, sexual abuse under the age of 14 (some researchers call the latter factor one of the most frequent causes of bulimia nervosa - almost 40% of cases).

There were also exceptional cases bulimia, the cause of which could, for example, be deliberately provoking obesity in order to avoid sexual harassment or violence. In ancient times in Greece and Rome, some members of the elite overeat during feasts, then induce vomiting to try dishes that no longer fit.

Diagnosing bulimia nervosa.

Part of the criteria for diagnosing bulimia is largely similar to the diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa, despite the apparent opposite of these two psychopathologies:

fear (close to panic) of gaining weight, despite the fact that the patient's weight is normal or even insufficient;
impaired perception of your own weight or body shape (body dysmorphic disorder);
low self-esteem;
denial of the presence of this disease or its intentional concealment;
anxiety, depression, withdrawal, and sometimes addiction to drugs or alcohol;
suicidal mood;
excessive intake of massive, coarse and high-calorie foods;
the use of ineffective or hazardous health techniques for weight control - vomiting, excessive physical activity, the use of laxatives, diuretics, enemas, appetite suppressants, and much more;
the frequency of the above crises is at least twice a week for at least 3 months.

The consequences of bulimia.

The most serious complications ( consequences of bulimia) caused by bulimia nervosa are:

Esophagitis is an inflammation of the lining of the esophagus due to vomiting.
Damage to the mucous membrane of the esophagus or stomach due to huge amounts of food consumed (up to rupture).
Heartburn and ulcers.
Sore throat, hoarse voice.
Dehydration of the body.
Problems with the ionic (electrolyte) composition of blood and plasma, for example, hyponatremia (caused by frequent use of diuretics or laxatives that flush out calcium, potassium and other minerals and trace elements from the body).
Risk of kidney failure for the same reason.
Arrhythmia and shortness of breath.
Oral ulcers and dental problems caused not only by a lack of calcium, but also by the harmful effects of stomach acid on the tooth enamel during vomiting (caries).
Constipation caused by addiction to laxatives.
Bad smell of vomiting from the mouth.
Menstrual irregularities.
Swelling of the limbs.
Weakness and fainting (often at the time of eating).
Depression, addiction to drugs or alcohol.
A periodic manifestation of anorexia (normal, not nervous) is possible - as a result of an overabundance of negative emotions from eating, which further exacerbates the situation.
Deterioration of brain function and decreased intelligence.
Social disorientation or social phobia.
Disruption of communication with friends and family.
Decreased life expectancy.

Bulimia treatment.

The most common method treating bulimia nervosa psychotherapists consider cognitive-behavioral therapy, that is, directing the patient's thoughts and beliefs in the right direction, rethinking their goals and making the patient himself responsible for his diet and nutritional practices. Drug treatment is also used, with drugs such as fluoxetine (or other antidepressants of the pharmacotherapeutic group of SSRIs).

Treatments with Ericksonian hypnosis (the method of American psychotherapist Milton Erickson) is also quite effective, since it allows you to change a person's deep beliefs about food. Moreover, this therapy is shorter in duration than most other treatments for bulimia nervosa.

Other, somewhat less effective, treatments for bulimia are psychoanalysis, family therapy, and group therapy (like the popular Western societies of Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Sexaholics Anonymous, etc.).

And, of course, psychological treatment should be combined with physiological treatment to eliminate the above consequences and complications of bulimia nervosa.