AU_PSY492_M1_A2_Thompson_D.doc

Ana Carolina Reston, Maiara Galvao Vieira, Hila Elmalich, Eliana and Luisel Ramos. Who

are these women? These women were Brazilian fashion models who died in 2006 from anorexia

and bulimia. There are rules now in which models need to be a healthier weight, such as having a

Body Mass Index over 18 to walk the runway (Martin, March 13, 2010 ). However, more needs

to be done in other areas such as figure skating, dance and gymnastics. According to Olympic

figure skater Jenny Kirk who also suffers from an eating disorder about 85 percent of female

figure skaters have eating disorders and many are secretive and go unreported ( Coker, January

20, 2010). Eating disorders are not just a problem in other cultures but in the US anorexia

nervosa and bulimia have the highest number of girls and young women with the disorder

compared to other industrial nations. In the US there are more underweight or overweight people

than anywhere else in the world. Obsessive eating is a problem. The problem area is girls and

young women with anorexia nervosa and bulimia in the United States. Eating disorders have the

highest mortality rate of any mental illness and it is the third most prevalent chronic illness

among teens (ANAD National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders,

2011).

I know that the problem of eating disorders usually develops during the pre-teen years when

girls have issues with their own body image and have poor self-esteem. These girls are

perfectionists, and strive to be accepted by others. Many of these girls are belittled by others

telling them they are too fat to compete in a sport like gymnastics or figure skating. Girls starve

themselves to be lighter in order to perform flexible moves. However, not eating takes away their

strength and power to perform. Other factors in eating disorders include suffering from

depression. In fact 50 percent of females who have an eating disorder are depressed (ANAD

National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, 2011). Also, a female who

comes from a dysfunctional family is more likely to have an eating disorder. If the girl while

growing up has an overweight mother who is very demanding than the girl might be less likely to

eat and will pick at her food. I notice that girls who are more likely to develop anorexia nervosa

and bulimia are more affluent and often attend private school and strive to be the best at

everything. Teens who participate in after school activities throughout high school are less likely

to be obese. A sudden loss can be a factor for developing an eating disorder in females. The

person might feel since they can not control the situation they can control their own bodies by

binge eating and throwing up or by not eating. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia have negative

impacts on a person’s health because a person can develop heart problems, teeth problems, and

menstral irregularities. I have chosen the topic of anorexia nervosa and bulimia because I had

friends in high school who struggled with body image distortion, had poor self esteem in regards

to their body, and strived for perfection. Other people in high school struggled with eating

disorders coming into class painfully thin and willing to striving for perfection in everything they

did. Being a figure skater myself I could see the pain other skaters were going through in relation

to weight control. I feel that bringing up a social problem like anorexia nervosa and bulimia will

help the people having the disorder become less secretative making the disorder more

manageable for those who have the illness so that the adverse health consequences can be

avoided. An objective should be to know how to prevent eating disorders. The signs and

symptoms need to be known so that treatment of anorexia can be provided. Finally, one needs to

be informed on the appropriate treatments for the condition so that morbidity and mortality from

the condition can be reduced. A working title for the paper could be “Striving For Perfection

Leading To Death”.

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