The youth in the present time face serious conditions related to persistent eating behaviours seriously impacting their physical health and mental health along with their emotion and ability to function, known as eating disorders. This can be very well understood from their expressed dissatisfaction with their weight and shape. The most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder; other eating disorders include rumination disorder and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder. These often develop around the teen and young adult years of life however with the treatment we return to healthier eating habits and reverse some serious complications caused by the disorders. The various factors which contribute to the development of eating disorders are discussed below.
Psychological factors such as low self-esteem, depressed mood including the feelings of inadequacy and lack of control in life, generalized anxiety, anger and irritability are particularly pathogenic to the development of eating disorders, especially for Bulimia Nervosa (Raffi et al., 2000). Eating disorders are also reported more among patients who reportedly have more premorbid life stresses (Schmidt et al., 1997). There is a functional relation between negative affect and eating disorder symptoms (Steingberg et al., 1989). For example, people with Bulimia Nervosa attempt to elevate their mood by eating whereas purging allows them to avoid gaining weight (Johnson & Larson, 1982). Individuals’ personality features such as the need for control over one’s body and inadequate identity formation are among other contributing factors to the development of eating disorders.
Eating disorders serve as desperate attempts to regulate the overwhelming negative affect and emotion to construct a coherent sense of self (Rorty & Yager, 1996). The interpersonal situations which majorly contributed to this include troubled interpersonal relationships, difficulty expressing emotions and feelings. Having a history of being teased or ridiculed based on size or weight or a history of physical or sexual abuse leads to the development of the eating disorder, as these are seen as coping mechanisms to those who do not have any other constructive ways of dealing with a personal crisis (Troop, 1998).
There is a widespread biological factor associated with the development of eating disorders. The SGAN (1995, p. 237) indicates that “a combination of elevated CRH (corticotropin-releasing hormone) and elevated AVP (arginine vasopressin) may have a key role in sustaining the reduced food intake that is characteristic of the disorder. Biological factors can also be seen to perpetuate a disorder that initially had a biological origin. For instance, very-low-weight Anorexia Nervosa patients show olfactory impairment; such impairment is in all probability a consequence of starvation but may act to diminish the appeal of food (Fedoroff et al., 1995). Gastric distress and bloating, commonly reported in eating disorders, may also make eating aversive (Krahn et al., 1996).
Socio-cultural factors are among other vital factors contributing to the development of eating disorders. The idealization of slimness and derogation of fatness in cultures of abundance is 10 times more prevalent in women than men (Striegel & Moore, 1993, 1997). Some of the cultures around the world place a great value on obtaining the “perfect body” glorifying thinness in women and muscularity in men. According to these cultural norms, the value of people is based on physical appearance and not inner qualities and strengths. This societal disparity due to the glorification of being underweight is viewed as one of the leading causes of the development of eating disorders in young women.
Peer influence is another major contributor to the development of eating disorders among the youth. As adolescents learn certain attitudes and behaviours from their peers (Levine et al., 1994) from examples, encouragement and by the way of teasing for failure to adhere to peer norms. This can be very well understood as some adolescent female friendship cliques tend to be homogenous with respect to body-image concerns (Paxton et al., 1999). However, it is very important to understand that not all peers and not all cultures have similar influences and thus differences ought to occur.
Fashion magazines, movies, web series, television have a huge impact on the eating habits and body image issues that the youth is facing. There is a tendency among youth to internalize the media message regarding ideals for attractiveness (Heinberg & Thompson, 1995) and disrupt their eating habits.
More research in this field is required to get a better grasp of the development course of the various existing eating disorders. Some of the basic strategies for preventing eating disorders and developing healthy eating habits include most importantly communication about the issues that they are facing which sometimes compels them to make unhealthy choices, cultivating and reinforcing a healthy body image can be a great way to help them make the right decision, the family as well should undertake healthy eating habits and not practice dieting, this encourages them to eat a balanced diet and lead a healthy lifestyle.
– Urveez Kakalia and Annesha Datta.