What Are
Eating Disorders?
Eating disorders are serious, brain-based mental health conditions that affect how people think about food, body image, and self-worth. They are not choices or phases—they’re complex psychological illnesses that can affect anyone, regardless of age, gender, race, body size, or background.
People with eating disorders may eat much less or more than their body needs, feel intense anxiety around food, or engage in harmful behaviors to control their weight or shape. These conditions can cause serious physical and emotional harm—but recovery is possible with the right support.
Even if someone doesn’t meet the formal diagnostic criteria, disordered eating behaviors can still cause deep distress and deserve care and attention. Eating disorders exist on a spectrum, and early support can make a meaningful difference.
The most common Eating Disorders based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5), include:
Anorexia Nervosa (AN)
A reversible, biologically based disorder characterized by restriction of energy intake leading to a significantly low body weight in the context of age, sex, developmental trajectory, and health status and associated with a disturbance of body image, intense fear of gaining weight, lack of recognition of the seriousness of the illness and/or behaviors that interfere with weight gain. Two subtypes are distinguished: restricting type and binge eating/purging type.
Information and statistics sourced from The Academy for Eating Disorders (AED)
FAQ
Who develops eating disorders? Do eating disorders affect certain types of people?
Eating disorders can affect anyone. People of all ages, genders, socioeconomic statuses, shapes and sizes, sexual orientations, abilities, neurodiversities, races, and ethnicities can experience an eating disorder.
Are eating disorders common?
Eating disorders are not rare occurrences. Over 29 million Americans experience a clinically significant eating disorder during their lifetime.
Are eating disorders deadly?
Eating disorders have the 2nd highest mortality rate of any mental illness, with nearly 1 person dying every 52 minutes as a direct result of their illness.
Are eating disorders more common in women?
Women tend to be more likely to develop eating disorders than men, but eating disorders affect all genders. 13% of women over the age of 50 have symptoms of an eating disorder.
Are comorbid mood disorders related to eating disorders?
30-50% of individuals with Anorexia Nervosa, nearly half of those with Bulimia Nervosa, and nearly half of those with Binge Eating Disorder have a comorbid mood disorder.
Do people get treatment for eating disorders?
Yes, some do. Unfortunately, less than one third of people who have an eating disorder ever receive treatment.
Information and statistics sourced from The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness.
Important Facts About Eating Disorders
01
All eating disorders are serious disorders with the potential for life-threatening physical and psychological complications.
04
Eating disorders do not discriminate. They can affect individuals of all ages, genders, ethnicities, socioeconomic backgrounds, and all body shapes, weights, and sizes. Most individuals with eating disorders are not visibly underweight.
07
All instances of precipitous weight loss or gain in otherwise healthy individuals should be investigated for the possibility of an eating disorder. Rapid weight fluctuations can be a potential marker of an eating disorder, although not all restrictive eating results in weight loss.
10
All eating disorders can be associated with serious medical complications affecting every organ system in the body. It is possible to have completely normal labs and no measurable physiologic dysfunction; individuals with this profile but with a suspected eating disorder still merit prompt, multidisciplinary care with an urgent focus on recovery. Eating disorders can also worsen medical symptoms from other diagnoses such as irritable bowel syndrome, migraines, and dysautonomia.
02
Diet culture and weight bias can interfere with prompt diagnosis and treatment of eating disorders.
05
Individuals at any weight may be malnourished and/or engage in unhealthy weight control practices.
08
In children and adolescents, failure to gain expected weight or height, and/or delayed or interrupted pubertal development, should be investigated for the possibility of an eating disorder.
03
Excessive value placed on weight loss, as well as the conflation of health and weight by providers and society, can delay eating disorder recognition and impede treatment.
06
Individuals with an eating disorder may not recognize the seriousness of their illness and/or may be ambivalent about changing their eating or weight control behaviors.
09
Individuals with eating disorders, and sometimes their loved ones as well, may be reluctant to acknowledge eating disorder symptoms and/or the deleterious impact of the symptoms. Thus, denial of symptoms should not impede consideration of a possible eating disorder diagnosis.
Information and statistics sourced from The Academy for Eating Disorders (AED).
Related Videos
Can One Recover From an Eating Disorder?
Yes. Full recovery is possible from all eating disorders.
Early detection and treatment are associated with a better chance of recovery.
Full resolution of symptoms may take an extended period of treatment.
Psychological symptoms may transiently increase with initial treatment and improvement in physical health.
REMEMBER that eating disorders are NOT fads, phases, or lifestyle choices. They are biologically based, heritable disorders.
People do not choose to have eating disorders and they can fully recover from eating disorders.
Information and statistics sourced from The Academy for Eating Disorders (AED).