An Eating Disorder describes a condition of eating for a need other than the physical need.

Organisms need to consume substances for life & regeneration – plants take in sunlight & carbon dioxide, insects eat microorganisms and animals eat either plants or flesh for survival. Similarly, humans take in a variety of foods to support the physical body to grow, repair & regenerate.

The act of eating is necessary to strengthen & nourish the body. When the act of eating is to satisfy something else, say emotional, mental or physic needs, it can be termed as an eating disorder.

All babies are blank pieces or paper when they are born. You were too.

Firstly, an Eating Disorder is simply like any other addiction. Smoking, Alcohol & Drugs are other disorders that can be just as deadly as an Eating Disorder. These are different methods of numbing the senses to veil a deeper pain.

Studies have shown however that Eating Disorders could be more deadly because they are more difficult to detect.

Based on international statistics, Eating Disorders affect an average of 70mil people worldwide. Almost 1 out of 5 woman gets it at some point of time in their life, and 90% of the sufferers are aged between 19 & 25. Approximately 60% of sufferers who seek treatment recover; the remaining 40% either carry the condition for life or naturally drop out of it, as they grow older.

Although the estimated number of deaths from Eating Disorders is 50,000, the guess is that there could be many more. Eating Disorders cause a number of physiological & psychological changes that could take time to recover from. In addition, the issues, which led to the Eating Disorders in the first place, are usually deep emotional baggage that requires clarity, courage, support, & persistence to release.

How do I know? I suffered first from Anorexia, and then Bulimia in my teens and adulthood. Experts estimated that 50% of Anorexia sufferers turn Bulimia in later years; I was one of them.

Healing Eating Disorders is more a journey than a destination. When I decided that I’ve had enough of the bad habits of smoking, drinking & took committed action to rid them, that I came face to face with the deep emotional pain underlying all addictions.

On top of first hand experience how it feels like to be victim of addictions, I also know one thing for sure: that they can be kicked, and for good. I didn’t say it’s easy or effortless; but it sure is possible.

There are several factors to consider when healing an Eating Disorder. Similar to the way we tackle smoking & drinking, kicking bad habits involve Physiological, Emotional, Mental and Spiritual. Every one of these 4 elements is integral; even missing just one of them would render the quitter back at square one at some point.

That’s why on top of a solid quitting plan, we need to address issues & baggage at every single level.

Click here for Eating Disorders Part II
(C) Copyright Linda Loo

Tags: raw & living foods, raw food health, low fat recipes, raw food recipes