Eating Disorders Essay -- essays research papers

Imagine a thirteen-year-old girl who weighs 60pounds because she is starving herself. either timeshe come outs in the mirror, she sees herself as fat.Picture her p atomic number 18nts watching their daughter literallydisintegrating into thin air. This is the life of a familydealing with an eat disorder. Eating disorders ar a major problem with the preadolescent bulk oftodays society. While anorexia and bulimia aresociological problems plaguing the worlds youth,there are also other have disorders. This "fatphobia", or fear of being over-weight, disturbspeople to the height where they are in a way,committing suicide. Eating disorders have been termed the diseaseof the 1980s. An eating disorder is defined as "adangerous and intense variant to become thin(Macionis 350). Even though it has been foundthat "95% of people who suffer anorexia orbulimia are woman, mostly from white, relatively plentiful families" (Macionis 350), "thepre-occupation and obsession with food are nonlimited to wo workforce" (Meadow 24). Although somemen also deal with eating disorders, most researchhas been d peerless on women. In 1985, 95% ofwomen felt they were overweight, while only 25%were genuinely considered medically overweight(Marshall 124). By the age of thirteenapproximately 53% of females are unhappy withtheir bodies, and by the age of eighteenapproximately 78% are unhappy (Marshall 124).Are culture could be seen as a narcissist society.Narcissism is a preoccupation with ones self, aconcern with how one appears to others, and withliving up to an image (Meadow 127). It seems thatappearance is an important factor in our everydaylife. According to Michael Levine, who in 1987said, "Our culture transmits powerful messagesthat, just as men can not be too rich, women cannot be too thin" (Macionis 350). While all womenwant to look as perfect as "Barbie", for some itjust isnt possible. For women, being refined isalmost synonymous with being successful(Macionis 350). It is also thought that 40% of theadult US population is significantly overweight(Meadow 24). Some experts odor that eatingdisorders are reaching epidemic proportions andestimate the national graze to be as high as 12% ofwomen (Meadow 24). In fact, fit to thePhoenix Gazette on November 7, 1985, "... ...with aneating disorder. If you suspect that your child oranyone you know has an eating disorder youshould never tell them their crazy, blame them, natter about them, follow them around to checktheir eating or cleansing behavior. You should alsonever ignore them, reject them, tell them to quit the plastered behavior, or feel you need to solve theirproblems (teenhope.com 3). Some things youshould do are to listen with understanding,appreciate their openness and the risk they took totell you, support them and be available. Two ofthe most important things you should do are toalways go across her hope, and continuously, but gentlysuggest counseling .Roughly two million young women suffer fromthe symptoms of anorexia nervosa or bulimia(Meadow 127). Eating disorders are caused by astriving to "look good". This need to "look good"is so bad that in the mid 1980s 477,000 estheticsurgeries were done, that was up 61% from 1981(Marshall 127). Although not all is known abouteating disorders, we must keep analyze them, andthe effect society has on causing these problems,so we can someday be able to control and preventthese diseases.