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Summary
Eating disorders are serious behavior problems. They can include severe overeating or not consuming enough food to stay healthy. They also involve extreme concern about your shape or weight.
Types of eating disorders include
- Anorexia nervosa, in which you become too thin, but you don’t eat enough because you think you are fat
- Bulimia nervosa, which involves periods of overeating followed by purging, sometimes through self-induced vomiting or using laxatives
- Binge-eating, which is out-of-control eating
Women are more likely than men to have eating disorders. They usually start in the teenage years and often occur along with depression, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse.
Eating disorders can lead to heart and kidney problems and even death. Getting help early is important. Treatment involves monitoring, talk therapy, nutritional counseling, and sometimes medicines.
NIH: National Institute of Mental Health
Latest News
- Brain Stimulation May Help People with Anorexia (03/25/2016, HealthDay)
Treatments and Therapies
- Eating Disorder Treatment: Know Your Options (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Living With
- Mental illness (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Related Issues
- Compulsive Exercise (Nemours Foundation)
- What People with Anorexia Nervosa Need to Know about Osteoporosis (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)
Specifics
- Anorexia Nervosa (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health)
- Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (Merck & Co., Inc.)
- Binge Eating Disorder (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health)
- Binge Eating Disorder (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
- Bulimia Nervosa (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health)
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Anorexia Nervosa (National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Binge-Eating Disorder (National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Bulimia (National Institutes of Health)
Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Reference Desk
- Eating Disorders Glossary (F.E.A.S.T.)
Find an Expert
- American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist Finder (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
- Find a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)
- Help for Mental Illnesses (National Institute of Mental Health)
- Mental Health Treatment Program Locator (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)
- National Institute of Mental Health
Children
- Kids and Eating Disorders (Nemours Foundation)
- Pica (Nemours Foundation)
Teenagers
- Binge Eating Disorder (Nemours Foundation)
- Compulsive Exercise (Nemours Foundation)Available in Spanish
- Eating Disorders (Nemours Foundation)Available in Spanish
- I Think My Friend May Have an Eating Disorder. What Should I Do? (Nemours Foundation)
- Teen Eating Disorders: Tips to Protect Your Teen (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Women
- Pregorexia: A Legitimate Problem during Pregnancy? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Patient Handouts
- Anorexia nervosa Available in Spanish
- Binge eating disorder Available in Spanish
- Break the Bonds of Emotional Eating Available in Spanish
- Bulimia Available in Spanish
- Pica Available in Spanish