What is bulimia? This disease, also known as bulimia nervosa, is a specific eating disorder, sometimes associated with anorexia nervosa. Definition was given to him only in the early 1980s. This is due to the fact that the ailment is often hidden, people who suffer from bulimia look completely normal. Most of them are of normal weight, and some may even be overweight.
The main symptom is overeating, followed by vomiting, which is independently induced in order to clear the stomach of the food eaten. About 85% of cases are reported in teenage girls, and about 10-15% in young men.
Many do not know what bulimia is, and do not realize that their loved ones are sick, because everything is apparently normal: a person takes food. Direct attacks of gluttony and cleaning can occur regularly or from time to time. Vomiting can be caused by pressing fingers on the back of the tongue, some can train themselves and freely induce vomiting with a single auto-suggestion.
Other methods used by bulimia patients to cleanse food include laxatives and diuretics. Excessive urination and defecation is the second characteristic sign of this disease. Cleaning may occur after each meal or less frequently. Sometimes cases of bulimia are episodic and do not recur, but for some, this condition can last a lifetime.
The products that are most often overeating with this disease are characterized by high calorie content and high sugar content (food of pleasure or comfort). After the food has been eaten, the patient feels disgust and causes vomiting. Therefore, many who are trying to quickly lose weight are interested in what bulimia is and how effectively it can be used to lose weight.
However, the causes of this disease are currently unknown. Key factors: peer pressure and weak self-confidence. It can also be associated with problems such as depression and anxiety. When asked about what bulimia is, some people may say that it is a way to control their life.
One of the main signs that a person has an eating disorder is a visit to the toilet immediately after eating. Patients can also be very secretive about everything related to food, and do not want to discuss it.
Due to the secretive nature, bulimia is rarely cured. The course of the disease can weaken when a person gains self-confidence, or he simply becomes more mature.
Some of the most common effects of bulimia are:
• Due to repeated exposure to stomach acid, erosion of tooth enamel develops.
• Caries, hypersensitivity to cold or hot food.
• Edema and pain in the salivary glands (due to repeated vomiting).
• Gastric ulcer.
• Rupture of the stomach and esophagus.
• Abnormal accumulation of fluid in the intestines.
• Disruption of normal bowel function.
• Violation of electrolyte balance.
• Dehydration.
• Heart rhythm disturbance, in severe cases - a heart attack.
• Increased risk of suicidal behavior.
If you have a loved one with an eating disorder, then he needs comprehensive support and assistance in realizing that he has a serious problem - bulimia. Self-treatment of this disease is extremely ineffective, precisely because the majority does not even admit to themselves that there is a problem. Some are actively resisting any help and display aggression with any intervention.
Therefore, if you or your loved ones have this problem, be sure to seek professional help, without which it is impossible to achieve success.