Signs and Symptoms of Eating Disorders

Warning signs of eating disorders
Many people worry about their weight, what they eat, and how they look. This is especially true for teenagers and young adults, who face extra pressure to fit in and look attractive at a time when their bodies are changing.
In the early stages, it can be challenging to tell the difference between an eating disorder and normal self-consciousness, weight concerns, or dieting. As eating disorders progress, the red flags become easier to spot. But a person with an eating disorder will often go to great lengths to hide the problem, so it’s important to know the warning signs.
Restricting food or dieting
The most obvious warning signs of eating disorders involve restrictive eating behaviors. A friend or family member with an eating disorder may frequently skip meals or make excuses to avoid eating—he or she had a big meal earlier, isn’t hungry, or has an upset stomach. The person may also claim to be disgusted by foods that used to be favorites.
When your loved one does eat, he or she may take tiny servings, eat only specific low-calorie foods, or obsessively count calories, read food labels, and weigh portions. In an effort to curb appetite, your friend or family member may also take diet pills, prescription stimulants like Adderall or Ritalin, or even illegal drugs such as speed.
Bingeing
Some people with eating disorders eat normally around others, only to binge in secret—usually late at night or in a private spot where they won’t be discovered or disturbed. Warning signs of bingeing include piles of empty food packages and wrappers, cupboards and refrigerators that have been cleaned out, and hidden stashes of high-calorie foods such as desserts and junk food.
Purging
People with eating disorders often go to extreme measures to work off calories from a binge or even a normal snack or meal. They may purge by throwing up, fasting, exercising vigorously, or using diuretics and laxatives.
Common warning signs of purging include disappearing right after a meal or making frequent trips to the bathroom. If your friend or family member is vomiting, he or she may run the water to muffle the sound and use mouthwash, breath mints, or perfume to disguise the smell.
Distorted body image and altered appearance
A loved one’s appearance can also offer clues to an underlying problem. Significant weight loss, rapid weight gain, and constantly fluctuating weight are all possible warning signs. A person with an eating disorder may also wear baggy clothes or multiple layers in an attempt to hide dramatic weight loss.
Other warning signs include a distorted self-image or an obsessive preoccupation with weight. A relative complains about being fat despite a dramatically shrinking frame, for example, or a friend spends hours in front of the mirror, inspecting and criticizing her body.
Common eating disorder warning signs
§ Preoccupation with body or weight
§ Obsession with calories, food, or nutrition
§ Constant dieting, even when thin
§ Rapid, unexplained weight loss or weight gain
§ Taking laxatives or diet pills
§ Compulsive exercising
§ Making excuses to get out of eating
§ Avoiding social situations that involve food
§ Going to the bathroom right after meals
§ Eating alone, at night, or in secret
§ Hoarding high-calorie food




Anorexia Nervosa
Dramatic weight loss in a relatively short period of time
Wearing big or baggy clothes or dressing in layers, to hide body shape and/or weight loss
Obsession with weight and complaining of being overweight
Obsession with calories and fat content of foods
Obsession with continuous exercise
Visible food restriction and self-starvation
Use or hiding use of diet pills, laxatives, ipecac syrup or enemas
Fear of eating around and/or with others
Hiding food in places like closets, cabinets or suitcases, to avoid eating it
Flushing uneaten food down the toilet
Vague or secretive eating patterns.
Keeping a "food diary"
Pre-occupied thoughts of food and weight
Visiting websites that promote unhealthy ways to lose weight
Reading books about weight loss and eating disorders
Hair loss
Pale or "grey" appearance to the skin
Dizziness and headaches
Low self-esteem
Feeling worthless
Need for acceptance and approval from others
Complaints of often feeling cold.
Low blood pressure
Loss of menstrual cycle
Constipation or incontinence
Perfectionist personality
Loss of sexual desire
Mood swings
Depression
Fatigue
Insomnia or poor sleeping habits
Bulimia
Frequent trips to the bathroom immediately after meals (at times accompanied with water running in the bathroom for a long period of time - to hide the sound of vomiting).
Visible bingeing and/or purging
Hiding food in places like closets, cabinets or suitcases, to eat it later
Maintaining a list that consists of food and/or behaviors, like purging, restricting, calories consumed, exercise, etc
Self-defeating statements after food consumption
Frequent soar throats and/or swollen glands
Abnormal bowel functioning
Damaged teeth and gums
Swollen salivary glands in the cheeks
Sores in the throat and mouth
Bloating
Dehydration
Fatigue
Dry skin
Irregular heartbeat
Sores, scars or calluses on the knuckles or hands
Menstrual irregularities or loss of menstruation (amenorrhea)
Feeling that they can't control your eating behavior
Eating until the point of discomfort or pain
Self-induced vomiting
Laxative use
Excessive exercise
Unhealthy focus on body shape and weight
Having a distorted, excessively negative body image
Depression or anxiety
Binge Eating
Fear of not being able to control eating
While eating, not being able to stop
Chronic dieting on a variety of popular diet plans
Eating much more food during a binge episode than during a normal meal or snack
Eating faster during binge episodes
Feeling that the eating behavior is out of control
Frequent dieting without weight loss
Frequently eating alone
Hoarding food
Hiding empty food containers
Feeling depressed, disgusted or upset over the amount eaten
Holding the belief that life will be better if they can lose weight
Vague or secretive eating patterns
Self-defeating statements after food consumption
Blaming weight for failure in social and professional community
Holding the belief that food is their only friend
Frequently out of breath after relatively light activities
Excessive sweating and shortness of breath
High blood pressure and/or cholesterol
Leg and joint pain
Weight gain
Decreased mobility due to weight gain
Loss of sexual desire
Poor sleeping habits