The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), ahead of The National Eating Disorder Awareness Week has just published info-graphics that discuss a serious health issue – eating disorders. The aim of publishing these info-graphics is to create awareness among people about disorders and factors that can lead to eating disorders.
According to the latest reports coming from NEDA, dieting is one of the main causes of developing disorders in teens aged between 14 and 15 years. Even non-overweight girls are engaged in some sort of dieting program, according to NEDA, which is considered as a serious health issue.
The International Eating Disorder Awareness week just began on the 27th of February 2017.
Eating disorders at the workplace
According to sources, more women in the middle-age group are showing signs of having a disorder, when compared to other age groups. This means a person who is working along with you is likely to be suffering from an eating disorder which can lead to serious health issues if not treated.
In her research, Dr. Nadia Micali, a well-known psychiatrist, currently working at Maudsley Hospital, reported that eating disorders are more common in women aged between 40 to 50 years. According to her findings, only 30% of the women have asked for help, while more than 15% continue to live their life with an eating disorder.
She also added that most women felt that their coworkers and colleagues are uneducated about eating disorders and that made it more difficult for them to recover from it.
Eating disorders can lead to serious health issues if not spotted in time
According to experts, it is not always easy to spot someone with an eating disorder.
Rebecca Field from BEAT (Beat Eating Disorders) a charity that helps women with eating disorders, says that the early signs in a person suffering from a disorder will be psychological.
Physical signs will crop up only in the later stages develop. If a person is experiencing severe mood changes and showing behavioral changes, then it can be taken as a sign that the person is suffering from an eating disorder.
Physical changes are another sign that a person is suffering from an eating disorder. According to Amy Wickstead, faculty head at the British Psychological Society (BPS), it is not essential that the person needs to be underweight for having an eating disorder. If the person is having bloating, cold fingers and cuts that take too long to heal, she may be suffering from an eating disorder. According to Wickstead, there are many people who do not lose weight but have many physical problems due to poor eating habits that can lead to more serious issues.
Another sign of a person suffering from an eating disorder is wearing tight clothes or baggy clothes or keeping their distance from colleagues. Rebecca Field adds that it is very important for a person to help a person suffering from eating disorder. You need to be compassionate and supportive so that they can overcome the disorder that can lead to severe health issues that can ruin their life forever.