In American culture, although our obesity rates are steadily growing, the pressure to attain never-ending hallmarks of beauty is as evident as ever. This, and other factors such as genetics and family influence can result in the display of an eating disorder if a person finds that they are extremely dissatisfied with their body. This person is not typically a “fad-dieter”, but one that has a chronic history of restrictive eating, so much so that it results in a dangerously low body weight.

Two commonly diagnosed eating disorders are anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa can be life-threatening, and is characterized by self-starvation. On the other hand, bulimia nervosa occurs through recurrent episodes of extreme overeating and compensatory actions to prevent weight gain, for instance, self-induced vomiting, fasting, excessive exercise, and the misuse of laxatives (or any of these combined).

As much as 95% of people with anorexia nervosa are women or young girls. According to the American Psychiatric Association, conditions of anorexia nervosa include: refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for age and height, intense fear of weight gain or obesity, even though considered underweight by all medical criteria, disturbance in the way in which one’s body weight or shape is experienced, undue influence of body weight or shape on self-evaluation, or denial of the seriousness of the current low body weight, and amenorrhea in females who are past puberty (if the female’s menstrual cycles only occurs when given hormones). The signs of anorexia nervosa differ between male and females. Males are more likely to exercise excessively than to have extremely restrictive diets and are less concerned about scale weight, and more concerned with muscle mass.

Health risks of anorexia nervosa include the body’s use of