An eating disorder is a major health disease. Some people reduce their food intake to lose weight and slim their bodies with time. They get obsessed with this, and unconsciously, they leave the food, a sign of an eating disorder. It affects a person emotionally and physically. In some situations, it can lead you to death bed. Eating disorders frequently coexist with other mental health illnesses affecting whole-body function. Eating disorders are complicated conditions marked by abnormalities in how one thinks about and handles food, their weight, and their physical appearance. The article highlights the significance of recognizing and treating eating disorders by exploring the many health effects linked with them.
Health Consequences of Eating Disorders
Many diseases are caused by overeating and limited eating, which have serious health consequences.
Nutritional shortages
An adequate intake of calories, proteins, vitamins, and minerals can improve essential body activities. But limited eating habits brought on by illnesses like anorexia nervosa restrict food intake, which can cause serious essential nutritional shortages. It can cause severe health consequences:
- Weight loss
- Hair loss
- Extreme weakness
- Exhaustion
- Lightheadedness
- Weakened immune system
- Poor wound healing might result from this.
Gastrointestinal Disturbances
The gastrointestinal disturbances are due to bulimia nervosa disease, in which you eat food in very excessive amounts. The gastrointestinal system is severely damaged by the exclusion habits associated with bulimia nervosa. Frequent vomiting exposes stomach acid, which can result in:
- Esophagus Inflammation
- Bloating and constipation
- Tooth Issues
- Weight gain or obesity
- Severe Dehydration
- Digestive Issues
- Colon Damage
- Abdominal pain
Mental Health Disorders
Eating disorders have a great effect on mental health. Because the shortage of important components in the body leads to many mental health consequences. Sadly, many eating disorders can have serious health effects that have long-lasting impacts on the human body, such as:
- Depression
- Fainting
- Movement problems
- Anxiety and extreme anger
- Headache and sometimes migraine
- Nerve-related pain
- Panic attacks
- Posttraumatic stress disorder
Bone Health disorders
Bone health can be seriously damaged by inadequate nutritional intake, which is particularly common in restrictive eating disorders. Our body needs enough calcium and vitamin D to maintain the bone density. People with eating disorders are more likely to develop bone-related diseases such as:
- Early bone loss
- Osteoporosis
- Osteomalacia
- Stress fractures and other bone-related problems when they are deficient in certain nutrients.
Hormonal Imbalances
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that interferes with the normal synthesis of hormones. Low body weight in females can cause amenorrhea, which can also cause hormonal abnormalities. It decreases bone density and creates problems with the reproduction system:
- Loss of menstrual periods
- Extreme pain during menstrual periods
- Regulation Of Body Temperature
- Mental instability
- Metabolism Can Be Affected by These Abnormalities.
- PCOS AND PCOD
Kidney health disorders
The liver, kidneys, and pancreas can all suffer harm from malnutrition and electrolyte imbalances brought on by exclusion. Electrolyte imbalances and dehydration put the kidneys in danger since they can cause renal failure. Because the eating disorder also causes dehydration. Long-term dehydration can cause organ damage and lead to death.
- Renal failure
- Kidney failure
- Kidney damage
Sleeping disorder
Overeating and restricted eating cause major health issues such as sleeping disorders. A proper 8 to 10 hours of sleep is important for the human body to perform daily tasks efficiently. But due to eating disorders, many sleeping disorders occur that affect health, such as:
- Insomnia
- Parasomnia
- Narcolepsy
- Sleep Apnea
Other health consequences for the body
Insufficient intake of calories and fats can lead to dry skin and brittle hair that may fall out. In starvation, the body may grow a fine, soft hair known as lanugo to retain heat. Prolonged and severe dehydration has the potential to cause kidney failure. Insufficient nutrition can result in a decrease in specific blood cell types. Anemia occurs when there is a shortage of red blood cells or inadequate iron in the diet, leading to symptoms like fatigue, weakness, and difficulty breathing. Malnutrition can also reduce white blood cells responsible for fighting infections. Eating disorders create many diseases and health consequences:
- High cholesterol
- Cardiovascular disease
- Kidney and gallbladder disorders
- Breathing and sleeping problems
Conclusion:
Eating disorders negatively affect a person’s health and the quality of life. It doesn’t just affect the physical health it also effects the mental, cardiovascular and overall body health. To recover and improve general health, it is essential to understand the value of early intrusion, build a supportive atmosphere, and seek expert assistance. Eating disorders can affect all-age people, but most likely, it is present in people of teenage and young age. It can contain major health consequences such as kidney failure, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, anemia, etc. The significant death rate associated with eating disorders because it increases the risk od death rate by developing chronic diseases.
