What are Eating Disorders: Types, Symptoms and Causes

Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are mental illnesses that involve complex relationships with food, exercise and body image. They cause significant harm and are by no means a lifestyle choice or phase. Anyone can develop an eating disorder regardless of age, gender, cultural or racial background. 

There are many types of eating disorders, including but not limited to:

• Anorexia Nervosa
• Bulimia Nervosa
• Binge Eating Disorder (BED)
• Orthorexia Nervosa
• Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorder (OSFED)
• Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID)
• Pica
• Rumination Disorder

What Are The Causes?

Although eating disorders appear to revolve around food and weight, they are far more complex than this. Rather than a single cause, they develop through a combination of psychological, social and genetic factors. 

Many experts suggest that they are maladaptive coping strategies– coping behaviours that become a way to self soothe. Therefore traumatic experiences and negative life events may contribute to the development of eating disorders in some instances. 

It’s important to remember that every person’s experience of an eating disorder is different. Which is why many people do not meet the full criteria for a type of eating disorder, yet may still be experiencing one. 

Due to the diversity among eating disorders, at Natural Food Therapy we support you as an individual, rather than the disorder. We provide tailored treatment plans that support you holistically, rather than taking a generic approach.

You are worthy of true recovery – reach out for support today

Eating Disorder Facts

• Eating disorders affect approximately 3.4 million people in the UK
• 25% of those suffering from eating disorders are male
• They are mental illnesses and have the highest mortality rates among all psychiatric disorders
• Less than 6% of eating disorder sufferers are medically underweight
• 10,200 deaths occur each year due to eating disorders, that’s 1 death every 52 minutes
• The most common eating disorder is OSFED accounting for 47% of cases
• This is followed by BED at 22%, bulimia 19%, anorexia 8% and ARFID 5%
• Research suggests eating disorders are most common between ages 16-40
• Eating disorders are thought to last on average between 5-8 years

Statistics taken from Priory, Beat, and the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders.

Types of Eating Disorders

There is no single way to ‘have’ any eating disorder, however there are some common patterns that arise.

1. Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia typically involves restrictive eating, where food is being limited often to a dangerous degree. A strong fear of weight gain and distorted body image is often present, which can contribute to anorexic behaviours. As the illness progresses, sufferers may compensate for food eaten, through excessive exercise or purging. The illness causes a strong preoccupation with food, which can lead to social withdrawal and secrecy. A driving factor for anorexia is the ‘anorexic voice’, which is a self-punishing and critical voice that is known to perpetuate the illness.

Common anorexic symptoms include:

• Restricting food intake
• Preoccupation with food and body
• Distorted body image
• Low self-esteem
• Ritualistic eating patterns
• Social withdrawal and isolation
• Intense fear of weight gain
• Co-occurring mental health conditions
• Low weight
• Irregularities or loss of menstrual cycle
• Difficulty thinking clearly
• Gastrointestinal issues
• Decreased tolerance to cold
• Low body fat
• Body checking
• Low energy levels
• Excessive exercise
• Difficulty eating in front of others

Learn more about the causes, symptoms and treatment of Anorexia Nervosa in our comprehensive Anorexia guide.

2. Bulimia Nervosa

Bulimia involves a pattern of binge eating, where a person consumes large quantities of food. This is followed by compensating for food eaten through purging. Purging may include self-induced vomiting, taking laxatives/diuretics, excessive exercise, or fasting. Some compensatory behaviours have life-threatening consequences, such as severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.

In bulimia, binge eating often becomes a way to self-soothe– a coping mechanism providing short-term relief in times of stress. The purging tends to provide a feeling of safety or release following a binge, however often leads to difficult feelings of guilt and shame.

Common bulimic symptoms include:

• Recurrent episodes of binge eating
• Frequent trips to the bathroom during or after meals
• Feelings of shame or guilt linked to eating
• Distress over body image
• Weight fluctuations
• Negative body image
• Chronically inflamed or sore throat
• Swollen salivary glands around the neck and jaw
• Worn tooth enamel and tooth sensitivity due to exposure to stomach acid
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Co-occuring mental health conditions
• Dehydration due to loss fo fluid from purging
• Electrolyte Imbalance
• Russel’s Sign – scars on knuckles or hands from repeated self-induced vomiting
• Puffy cheeks
• Feeling uncomfortable eating food around others
• Secrecy around food
• Drinking excessive amounts of water

Learn more about the causes, symptoms and treatment of Bulimia Nervosa in our comprehensive Bulimia guide.

3. Binge Eating Disorder (BED)

As with bulimia, BED sufferers experience recurring episodes of binging, although this may not be followed by a compensatory behaviour. Binge eating is often part of a difficult cycle surrounding food and emotions. Although those suffering with BED may not compensate in ways such as purging, they may partake in restrictive dietary behaviours as a response to binge eating. This often fuels what is known as the ‘binge-restrict cycle’.

Common BED symptoms include:

• Recurrent episodes of binge eating
• Loss of control around food
• Secrecy around eating or hiding of food
• Repetitive dieting or sporadic fasting
• Withdrawal from social occasions
• Distress around body weight and shape  
• Body checking
• Rituals surrounding eating behaviours
• Eating alone
• Gastrointestinal issues
• Poor concentration
• Co-occuring mental health conditions
• Feelings of shame or guilt following binge eating
• Fluctuations in weight
• Low self-esteem

Learn more about the causes, symptoms and treatment of Binge Eating Disorder in our comprehensive Binge Eating guide.

4. Orthorexia Nervosa

Orthorexia is characterised by an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating. Sufferers often become increasingly selective and restrictive with their food choices in the pursuit of wellness. Food is often black and white, categorised as good or bad, healthy or unhealthy, clean or unclean, pure or impure.

Learn more about the causes, symptoms and treatment of Orthorexia in our comprehensive Orthorexia guide.

5. Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorder (OSFED)

Anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder are diagnosed using a set criteria of symptoms. Sometimes a person doesn’t exactly fit the criteria for any of these eating disorders. In this case, they may be diagnosed with “other specified feeding or eating disorder” or OSFED.

For example, someone with atypical anorexia may meet all the criteria for anorexia but may not be medically underweight. This would then fall into the OSFED category. Another example is atypical BED, where all the criteria for BED may be met, yet the binge eating occurs less frequently.

Additionally, OSFED is by far the most common diagnosis, with almost half of all sufferers falling into this category. This is because everyone’s experience of an eating disorder is different and therefore many will not ‘fit’ neatly into a set of criteria. It is also why at Natural Food Therapy we do not like to categorise people, instead we seek to support you as an individual however your eating disorder presents.

Learn about ARFID, pica and rumination disorder here.

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Worried you might have an eating disorder?

Take the S.C.O.F.F Questionnaire

This is a tool used to explore if eating disorders are present. A score of two or more may indicate the need to seek professional support.

• Do you ever make yourself Sick because you feel uncomfortably full?
• Do you worry you have lost Control over how much you eat?
• Have you recently lost more than One stone in a three month period?
• Do you believe yourself to be Fat when others say you are too thin?
• Would you say that Food dominates your life?

Worried you or a loved one may be developing an eating disorder? Get in touch to speak to one of our eating disorder specialists today.