Eating disorders: anorexia and bulimia
In recent years, the great mass impact of the media, as well as the dissemination of a perfect body image, has generated various stereotypes in our society, which have affected adolescents and young people in one way or another. Anorexia and Bulimia are a verifiable test of this, they are chronic and progressive diseases that have been influenced among young people around the world and all social classes. These conditions, which are closely linked to each other, have affected and charged the lives of thousands of young people in recent decades. This disease is a problem that has not decreased, but has been increased over the years. A proof of this is that in Mexico, the incidence of these conditions has increased 300% in the last twenty years.
But what are the causes that lead to the appearance of these diseases? How the disease develops? What consequences do they have on a personal level? How to solve, treat, but above all, prevent the problem?
By defining each of these conditions, we can say that they are nothing more than an addiction for thinness.
Anorexia nervosa is a eating disorder, which is characterized by the rejection of food and an obsessive fear of weight, which can lead to serious consequences. On the other hand, bulimia or bulimia nervosa is in the same way an eating disorder in which the patient consumes excess food in very short lapses, which jointly continues a period of repentance in which the person seeks to eliminate the amount offood consumed by induced vomit. Both diseases are linked to each other and generally, they can lead to depressive problems.
These problems occur mainly in women, since they usually are the ones who care more about their image. In our country, 90% of cases of anorexia and bulimia, are women between 14 and 17 years of age. However, although the problem is known very well, its causes are very varied and difficult to value. Social pressure, stereotypes and the come from a rigid family, are the main causes. In spite of the above, it can be assessed that these or are the real causes, since by thoroughly analyzing the issue, we can conclude that the center of everything is a low self – esteem and insecurity by the person who has thesediseases, regardless of their sex or age. In this way we can understand that if we do not love each other and we accept ourselves as we are, we will be an easy target for the criticism of our imperfect society who wants perfect people in every way.
A very casual question is that where all stereotypes come from that tell us how we should be? Advertising can get an answer to this question. Day by day, the media show us photographs of models with perfect bodies, perfect life and light products notWe are, we will not be well seen or accepted by others. Then as mentioned above, if you do not have a good self – esteem and we fail to accept and value ourselves as we really are, we begin to want to change;But this would not be only the problem but also that we seek to change to meet the demands of others or ourselves on having perfect bodies at the expense of everything, even of our own health.
It is so where these disorders begin to see. At this stage the person who is fat, which leads him to stop ingesting food, exercising excessively. That is where compulsive obsessive thinking is passed, in which the person believes that all foods fattening or harms. Subsequently, this is also the stage, which is perceptual dimorphism;The most critical stage of the disease in which the individual experiences an abnormality in the sense of perception with respect to his person, and despite being thin, he looks fat in front of the mirror.
Although anorexia can occur alone, sometimes it is accompanied by bulimia, which also has certain stages. The first is known as the beginning of the bulimic cycle;This begins with the exaggerated food intake, followed by self-induced vomiting or excessive consumption of laxatives. The second stage, known as bulimic chronicity, which is characterized by the creation of a certain addiction to the bulimic cycle.
However, when passing through the different stages, the person generally does not seek help. He feels alone, ashamed, tries to hide it at all costs and in most cases, he does not even recognize his condition or accepts that they are a problem, despite the personal consequences that these diseases bring to their health, among which are, anemia, dehydration, hair loss, absence in the appearance of secondary sexual characters, brittle nails, stomach problems, weight fluctuations, heart problems and even neuronal problems and self-giving.
Despite all the serious consequences that these health conditions have, the person does not care, he endures everything in order to achieve his goal that is to have a perfect body. This is why those who generally develop these diseases are usually very perfectionists, intellectually outstanding, strongly or focused on success, but who hide behind these qualities a low self – esteem, fear of rejection, failure and in general,unsafety.
All this can gradually lead to other psychological and psychiatric problems such as depression. The person sinks in a state of sadness and unhappiness, feels that not their presence has no value, which is useless for not being "perfect". From there, problems are not only on a personal level, but also social;He is isolated from people, loses a taste for certain activities that previously made him happy, family problems also arise among other things.
It is quite sad to know that this situation is for which several teenagers of our society are going through silently, that they feel trapped who do not find the exit, or that even worse, they have become so accustomed to living that way, to live togetherWith the pain and with the weight of this disease that they don’t even seek to leave. The worst of all this is that the same people have led;We have led to mocking, criticizing, belittling or reject. Simply, by establishing all these stereotypes and rules on the physical appearance that govern our society today. By believing that beauty and acceptance can only be achieved by having a sculptural body.
Thus, we can realize that we live in a society that worsens day by day, that says to take care and encourage the healthy development of the adolescent, but in reality, it is destroying it and is leading it to its own end, that is why notWe must believe that everything they show us is really true, we must forge critical thoughts before the media and not be fragile before all this.
In the same way we must help create an environment in which respect for the differences of others predominates, without stereotypes, discrimination or criticism so that we can have a self – esteem without fear of what others say.
It is very important to be attentive to behaviors that may be related to anorexia or bulimia, since they are problems that must be taken seriously, not as a game, or a fashion, or anything to get attention. They are eating disorders whose origin focuses on it under self – esteem and insecurity on oneself, which causes criticism or stereotypes about a perfect body to affect us easily and lead us to develop these diseases, whose practices can bring different consequences for our body andOur personal and social well -being, which leads us to our own end, to a hole of which at a certain point, even if we want we cannot leave. However, there are ways to treat and prevent these conditions with which we can contribute.
We must respect people, value them and accept them as they are;Do not criticize or judge them, so that it causes a change in society, to make this a better environment to develop as teenagers and great people, and above all do not seek to be ideal, but real.
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