An Eating Disorder is an illness that permeates all aspects of each sufferer’s life, is caused by a variety of emotional factors and influences, and has profound effects on the people suffering and their loved ones.
Treatment for eating disorders is available, although recovering from an eating disorder can take a long time. It is important for the person affected to want to get better, and the support of family and friends is invaluable.
Treatment usually involves monitoring a person’s physical health while helping them to deal with the underlying psychological causes.
Facts
- Around 1 in 250 women and 1 in 2,000 men will experience anorexia nervosa at some point. The condition usually develops around the age of 16 or 17.
- Bulimia is around five times more common than anorexia nervosa and 90% of people with bulimia are female. It usually develops around the age of 18 or 19.
- Binge eating usually affects males and females equally and usually appears later in life, between the ages of 30 and 40. Due to the difficulty of precisely defining binge eating, it is not clear how widespread the condition is.
- Over 1.1 million people in the UK are directly affected by eating disorders.
Source: NHS Choices
Read more
- Need help? @ Norfolk Eating Disorders Association
Excerpt: “I cannot emphasise enough how important it is to seek help and advice if you feel or even suspect something is not quite right. You should not feel afraid, ashamed or embarrassed. It is an illness just like any other and it can be treated with success. There is expert help and advice available. Everyone at NEDA is non-judgemental, friendly and understanding…… Do not suffer alone or in silence!”
For help contact: 01603 767062 / support@norfolkeda.org.uk
- Information sheets & leaflets @ b-eat
Excerpt: Eating disorders are a serious mental illness – not a fad, a diet gone wrong or a fashion accessory. That’s why eating disorders must be beaten. And they can – with the right treatment and the right support. beat is the organisation that campaigns; that challenges the stigma that people with eating disorders face; that gives people the help and support they need. We have a vision: eating disorders will be beaten. And we make our vision real.
For help contact: 0845 634 7650 / FYP@b-eat.co.uk / 07977 493345 (text)
