No Weigh!
Diversity Within Eating Disorders
Think anorexia and bulimia are just for teenage, middle-class white girls??
In a strange way, I wish there was only one population affected by disordered eating... but that is absolutely NOT the case. You can add young middle-class white BOYS, first of all, but more importantly you can add EVERYONE and ANYONE no matter their race, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, gender, physical disability, or age. Actually, the epidemic of eating disorders is GROWING in the United States, Canada, South America, Asia, Australia and Europe. In other words, the entire planet has become a prime candidate for the monster of food and weight addiction.
There are studies coming out now that report a rise in eating disorders in the ELDERLY population. I know this is true, I have come into contact with several clients in late life who are struggling (male and female). It is no longer uncommon for a woman in her 60's to develop food rituals and compulsive habits. Depression, as many of you know first hand, can lead a person into the arms of an eating disorder... and depression is VERY common in the elderly as well as the lower economic class. The media not only focuses on extremely and unnaturally thin bodies, it focuses on Caucasian bodies (for the most part) and people of color represented in the media are often made to look Caucasian (straightened hair, pencil-thin bodies, lighter skin color). The image of a successful person of color is always thin... the image of a successful male is thin... and the image of a successful mother (despite pregnancies) is thin... and so on. Suspiciously, unhealthy, high-fat foods are CHEAPER than healthy, low-fat foods. No doubt a plot to keep the lower class unhealthy and perhaps overweight, the same group that doesn't have adequate access to health care or eating disorder treatment.
It is becoming common for the ELDERLY to develop eating disorders but the medical community often does not recognize eating disorder symptoms unless they appear in a white teenage girl. BIG PROBLEM! The sooner anyone dealing with disordered eating is diagnosed, the sooner that person has the option of gathering helpful information and seeking help from others. MEN are also often undiagnosed because doctors assume males don't have eating disorders. Why?? I don't know... because actually it was an 11 year old BOY who was FIRST DIAGNOSED in England with Anorexia Nervosa in the early 1800's. So the medical history does not suggest this is "just a women's problem". In addition, the few who recognize that MEN get eating disorders are stuck on a stereotype that only GAY MEN and MALE ATHLETES struggle. This is out right NOT TRUE. My first experience of a boy with an eating disorder was when I was in high school, he was not an athlete, not gay (at that time, I no longer know him) but he was ANOREXIC. Often times, he was more anorexic than me. Of course I was easily diagnosable because I fit the stereotype fairly well, but this guy had my same pain, symptoms and more medical problems... yet there wasn't anyone suggesting an eating disorder. So how could he get help? Not to mention the added SHAME that society passes around, claiming that males "shouldn't" have eating disorders. What is that??? Women are alcoholics ALL THE TIME and men are bulimic ALL THE TIME. Where did we come up with any other ideas? It is baffling, and more importantly, it is HURTING the MEN who have eating disorders and feel ashamed because they aren't women with eating disorders. So the lack of education and misrepresentation in the media is CONTRIBUTING to their illness, but doubling the feelings of shame.
It MUST stop. Please please believe me, MALES (of ALL ages and colors) suffer from Eating Disorders. And PEOPLE OF COLOR (ALL colors) suffer from Eating Disorders. And people of ALL AGES suffer and people of all SEXUAL ORIENTATIONS suffer and people of all RELIGIONS suffer and people of all ECONOMIC CLASSES suffer. People with PHYSICAL DISABILITIES often suffer (example: cerebal palsy & wheelchair bound people). Period. I've met them all personally and I believe the theory that only young white chicks deal with this is DETRIMENTAL and actually ends up PERPETUATING eating disorders in people who don't "fit" that category as well as encourage people who do fit that category.
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COMPULSIVE EATING IS AN EATING DISORDER. Don't be fooled by the media's focus on anorexia and bulimia (or the focus of this page!). Compulsive eating is not just one of the eating disorders, it is the MOST COMMON eating disorder. And because there is weight gain often associated with compulsive eating, the societal outlook on compulsive eating is not one of concern, but one of disgust. This is a SERIOUS problem.
The public used to look down on alcoholism, the stereotype of an alcoholic bum overwhelmed our culture for many years and little sympathy was available, much less treatment. In the last twenty or thirty years, however, that has changed. Now rehabs and alcoholism centers are all over the place, insurance will cover most centers, and work will even allow time off for a person trying to deal with a drinking problem. In contrast, the compulsive eater is not given sympathy, and in fact, given shame (which is absolutely not what we need).
Despite the number of health problems associated with obesity, insurance is skeptical to pay for eating disorder treatment to help the compulsive eater gain power over their illness (which, in turn, would cut down on other expensive medical problems). Of course that is also true with anorexia and bulimia, which very few insurance companies are willing to pay for. Drug addiction, however, is covered much more often. I don't understand this! Drug addiction and food addiction are so very similar and awful for the addict to cope with... why discriminate?? Especially when so many studies show how on-going chronic disordered eating leads to very expensive health problems that could be stopped if the eating disorder is addressed! I am SO frustrated by this fact. I'm not sure how to change it, though I support eating disorder organizations (such as NEDO and ANAD) that lobby in Washington to change the insurance policies and gain education funds and advocate on behalf of eating disorder patients. I suggest everyone try to support these political platforms in any way you can... be it educating people around you, making changes in your own life for the better (not giving in to the media's unrealistic demands), writing letters to politicians and insurance companies, or running for office and making eating disorders a medical and mental health care issue! Any contribution in the right direction helps and is also a very wonderful POSITIVE action of your own that can help your recovery.
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In sum, EATING DISORDERS DO NOT DISCRIMINATE
The Eating Diseases occur among all human beings. Anorexia, Bulimia and Compulsive Eating thrive on millions of people,diverse people, and the ILLNESS is the problem, NOT the people who are afflicted by it....
AND DON'T BE SURPRISED TO WITNESS EATING DISORDER SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE OF COLOR, LESBIANS, ELDERLY PERSONS, MEN, MIDDLE-AGE PEOPLE, PHYSICALLY DISABLED, BISEXUALS, ANY ECONOMIC CLASS PERSONS, GAY MEN, PREGNANT FEMALES, KIDS, PEOPLE NOT RAISED IN THE UNITED STATES, ETC. ETC.
Thank you for letting me share. This topic is a vital part of the raw truth. Lisa
