The not-so bold or beautiful

The not-so bold or beautiful
or
Eating disorder can endanger ones' lives

Maria Endah Hulupi
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

Her friends were surprised to see Tina (not her real name)
continually stuff her mouth with all the food served during their
latest gathering. Right after the meal, when everybody was still
chatting, she excused herself to go to the bathroom.

One of her friends, who was also in the bathroom, heard her
vomiting. She began to get suspicious as Tina was so sensitive to
her questions and said she was neither sick nor pregnant.

Another girl named Lala (not her real name) was rarely seen
eating at her school's canteen and always avoided food and drink
with calories.

Despite her skinny body, Lala always seemed to be on a
constant and strict diet and at the same time overactive.

Family and friends watched her wilt and suffer hair loss and
dry skin as she shed more and more kilograms.

Both Tina and Lala suffer from eating disorders which can be
classified as:
* Anorexia nervosa
It is characterized by life threatening self-imposed starvation,
leading to significant weight loss, a refusal to maintain even
minimal body weight, calorie and fat gram counting, excessive
exercise to burn calories. This can lead to amenorrhea (absence
of menstruation), osteoporosis, anemia, stunted growth, digestive
problems and nerve damage.
* Bulimia nervosa
It is repeated binge eating, followed by purging through induced
vomiting, excessive exercise and laxative and diuretic abuses in
a bid to rid the body of the food or to burn the calories.
* Binge eating
It is eating an abnormally large amount of food. It can be with
or without purging, with at least 10 to 15 percent of the
sufferers becoming obese.

Although an unaware public may perceive an eating disorder as
a dangerous weight concern, it is actually a complex emotional
issue and whatever the type a person has developed, he or she is
likely to suffer alone.

Eating disorders, somehow, relate to the public's perception
of the ideal body shape. Since the public have been incessantly
exposed to slim and gorgeous looking models in the mass media,
many people, mostly women, set their standards on what the ideal
body shape is like.

A psychiatrist at the Siloam Gleneagles Hospital, Tangerang,
W.M. Roan, said people with eating disorders had developed a
serious distortion of their body image, which was considered a
personality disorder.

People at high risk were mostly teenagers who possessed rigid,
often misleading definitions about the ideal body shape, Roan
said.

"These people usually have low self-esteem and often consider
themselves fat although they have normal weight or even lower,"
Roan said, adding that most of the sufferers were intelligent.

Siloam's nutritionist, Endang Darmoutomo, said organic
problems which affected the hypothalamus in the brain could
desensitize a person to signs of hunger or satiation.

Due to their abnormal eating habits, anorexia and bulimia
sufferers deprived their bodies of the important nutrients they
needed, while those who binge eat were especially prone to
cardiac problems, high blood pressure, cholesterol, kidney
problems and strokes, she said.

Unlike stick-thin anorexics, Endang said bulimics were usually
unnoticed as their body weight tended to be normal. Though they
showed signs of malnutrition and other similar health problems,
it was not as severe as anorexics.

"Bulimics are also prone to developing rotten teeth and gum
problems caused by the acid in the stomach when they vomit. Apart
from that, they may also develop inflammation of the throat due
to repeated manipulation of the area and swollen cheeks because
of repeated vomiting," she said.

Though these people needed professional help, their distorted
body image would make it difficult for others to provide help and
discourage themselves from seeking help.

"They think they are fat so discussing a plan for weight gain
can have a devastating effect on them. But it can seriously
affect the function of body organs, which are likely to worsen
into life-threatening conditions," Endang said.

"Family members have to be creative in persuading their loved
ones to eat properly. It's worth telling them that hair loss and
dry skin are not included in the definitions of looking good."

Prevention is more important and parental guidance plays an
even more important role. Before a harmful eating habit ravages
their loved ones' health, parents have to observe any
irregularities regarding their children's eating habits.

"Parents must encourage their children to adopt a healthy diet
once they notice them avoiding food or an obsession with it,"
Roan said.

If these efforts fail, professional help from psychiatrists or
nutritionists was needed.

"They may need to take medication to improve their appetite
and mood. This will help them open themselves for treatment or
counseling," Roan said, adding that counseling for parents was
also needed to avoid themselves pushing their children to attain
the "ideal" shape.

Besides, parents and the public also needed to learn that
there had been a shift in the ideal body shape perception from
stick-thin Twiggy to slim supermodels Naomi Campbell and Cindy
Crawford to curvy toned singer/actress Jennifer Lopez.