10 Eating Disorder Symptoms
Article Sources
- 1. 'Overweight:' MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003101
- 2. 'Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID).' National Eating Disorders Association, 22 Feb. 2018, www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/arfid
- 3. 'Bulimia Nervosa.' Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 10 May 2018, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bulimia/symptoms-causes/syc-20353615
- 4. 'Excessive Exercise and Eating Disorders - Mirror.' Mirror, 11 June 2020, mirror-mirror.org/eating-disorders-2-2/excessive-exercise-and-eating-disorders
- 5. What Is Anorexia?: 'How To Spot Anorexia Symptoms .' FightED, fighted.org/about-eating-disorders/anorexia/
Anorexia, bulimia and binge eating: These are three eating disorders that are sometimes difficult to spot to the outsider. Even those who are close to those affected may not notice the warning signs. It's not always possible to spot the danger signs as anyone who has either of these conditions is unlikely to want anyone else to know, so they will go to great lengths to hide it.
No matter how hard a person tries to conceal their illness, eating disorders can be detected and adequate treatment can be arranged if people close to the person know the signs and symptoms of eating disorders.
Underweight/Overweight
Although being only a few pounds over or underweight shouldn't really cause concern, being excessively so would certainly ring alarm bells. It is also probably the easiest sign to spot as it's virtually impossible to hide, especially for anyone overweight. Those drastically underweight could try to hide it with oversized clothing. The normal body mass index (BMI) is between 18.5 to 24.9.
Adults with a BMI of 40 or above are considered extremely obese.1‘Overweight:’ MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003101 Being morbidly obese significantly increases the risk for high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and premature death. A BMI between 15 and 16 is considered severely underweight and can lead to malnutrition, anemia and decreased immune function.
