Download Bitten by Eating Disorders

Food in The Bible
From Faith to Action
Bitten by Eating Disorders
Famous People with eating
disorders
Spices
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Anise (Matthew 23:23 KJV) Coriander (Exodus 16:31; Numbers 11:7) Mustard (Matthew
13:31)
Fruits and Nuts
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Apples (Song of Solomon 2:5),Almonds (Genesis 43:11; Numbers 17:8),Dates (2 Samuel
6:19; 1 Chronicles 16:3)
Vegetables and Legumes
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Beans (2 Samuel 17:28; Ezekiel 4:9) Cucumbers (Numbers 11:5) Gourds (2 Kings 4:39)
Leeks (Numbers 11:5)
Grains
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Barley (Deuteronomy 8:8; Ezekiel 4:9) Bread (Genesis 25:34; 2 Samuel 6:19; 16:1; Mark 8:14)
Fish
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Matthew 15:36,John 21:11-13
Fowl
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Partridge (1 Samuel 26:20; Jeremiah 17:11) Pigeon (Genesis 15:9; Leviticus 12:8)
Animal Meats
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Calf (Proverbs 15:17; Luke 15:23)Goat (Genesis 27:9) Lamb (2 Samuel 12:4)
Dairy
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Butter (Proverbs 30:33) Cheese (2 Samuel 17:29; Job 10:10) Milk (Exodus 33:3; Job 10:10;
Judges 5:25)
Miscellaneous
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Eggs (Job 6:6; Luke 11:12) Grape Juice (Numbers 6:3)
What is an Eating Disorder?
l Anna
Freud
Hepburn
l Jane Fonda
l Princess Diana of Wales
l Audrey
Types of eating disorders
l Anorexia
nervosa ;weight as low as
possible, for example by starving
themselves or exercising excessively
l Bulimia; control weight by binge eating
and then deliberately being sick or using
laxatives.
l Binge Eating; compelled to overeat
l Characterised
by an abnormal attitude
towards food resulting in change to
eating habits and behaviour.
l May focus excessively on their weight
and shape, leading them to make
unhealthy choices about food with
damaging results to their health.
Who it affects
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Anorexia nervosa;1 in 250 women;1 in 2,000
men. Develops around the age of 16 or 17.
Bulimia five times more common than
anorexia nervosa; 90% are female; develops
around the age of 18 or 19.
Binge eating affects males and females
equally; appears later in life, between 30 and
40. Due to the difficulty of precisely defining
binge eating, it is not clear how widespread
the condition is.
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Cause & Risk Factors
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Family history of eating disorders, depression or
substance misuse .
Criticism of eating habits, body shape or weight.
Social pressures, job ( ballet dancers, models,
athletes) .
Certain characteristics, e.g. obsessive personality,
anxiety disorder, low self-esteem, perfectionist.
Particular experiences; sexual or emotional
abuse/distress, death of someone special.
Difficult relationships with family members or friends.
Stressful situations; e.g. problems at work, school or
university.
Lack of an “off” switch
Bulimia Nervosa
What are the signs? What happens?
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Worry more and more about their weight - but stay a normal
weight.
Binge eat.
Raid the fridge; buy lots of fattening foods - normally avoided.
Eat it all quickly in secret in their room/car
Take others food, shoplift to satisfy the urge to binge.
Afterwards feel stuffed, bloated, uncomfortable, tired, guilty,
depressed.
Get rid of the food by vomiting, purging with laxatives.
Have irregular menstrual periods.
Trapped in a routine of binge eating, vomiting, purging.
Binge Eating Disorder
Anorexia Nervosa
What are the signs? what happens
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Worry more and more about their weight; can't stop losing weight.
Eat less, ’’healthily’’ fewer calories; not enough to give the body energy.
Exercise more, to burn off calories,
Smoke, chew gum, slimming pills, laxatives.
Not want to eat themselves; buy food and cook for other people.
Remain hungry as ever, can't stop thinking about food.
Lie to people about the amount they are eating.
Lose interest in sex.
Family may be the first to notice thinness and weight loss.
Females - monthly menstrual periods become irregular or stop.
Males - erections and wet dreams stop, testicles shrink
May develop symptoms of bulimia - weight continues to be very low.
Bulimia Nervosa
When does it start?
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Mid-teens.
Unlikely to seek help until their early to midtwenties because they are able to hide it, even
though it affects their work and social life.
Most often seek help when their life changes the start of a new relationship or having to live
with other people for the first time.
About 4 out of every 100 women suffers from
bulimia at some time in their lives, rather fewer
men.
Affects of
anorexia and bulimia
Psychological symptoms
Sleep badly. Difficult to concentrate, depressed; Lose interest in other people.
Become obsessive about food and eating (and sometimes other things such as washing,
cleaning or tidiness).
Physical symptoms
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Find it harder to eat because the stomach has shrunk.
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Feel tired, weak and cold as the body's metabolism slows down.
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Constipated, brittle bones, Stinted height.
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Liver damage, particularly if alcohol is drank.
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Anorexia Nervosa has the highest death rate of any psychological disorder.
Vomiting can cause, :
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Loss of enamel on teeth , Puffy face, irregular heart beat - palpitations
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Weakness, tiredness, kidney damage, epileptic fits, inability to get pregnant.
Regular use of laxatives.
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Persistent stomach pain, Swollen fingers, no bowel movement without the use of laxatives.
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Huge weight swings.
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Purging appears as weight loss -regained immediately on drinking water, No calories are lost
using laxatives.
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is a pattern of behaviour that has
recently been recognised. It involves
dieting and binge eating, but not
vomiting. It is distressing, but much less
harmful than bulimia. Sufferers are more
likely to become overweight.
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People with special needs
and younger children
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A learning difficulty, autism or other
developmental problems can disrupt eating.
E.g some people with autism may take a
dislike to the colour or texture of foods, and
refuse to eat them.
The eating problems of pre-teen children are
more to do with food texture, “picky eating” or
being angry rather than with wanting to be
very thin. The ways of helping these problems
are rather different from those for anorexia and
bulimia.
Treatment
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Not treated = negative impact on job or schoolwork,
disrupt relationships with family members and friends.
The physical effects can sometimes be fatal.
Treatment is available, recovery can take a long time.
Important for the person affected to want to get better,
and the support of family and friends is invaluable.
Treatment usually involves monitoring a person’s
physical health while helping them to deal with the
underlying psychological causes.
Self Help
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Regular mealtimes – THREE A DAY PLUS morning,
afternoon and night time snacks.
Small steps
Keep a diary of what is eaten.
Honesty
Make two lists – what the disorder has given and what
it has lost.
Be kind to your body, don’t punish it.
Know what a reasonable weight is and understand
why.
Stories of other people’s experiences of recovery.
Think about joining a self-help group.
Avoid websites that encourage weight loss.
Treatments
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Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT): focuses on
changing how someone thinks about a situation, which
in turn will affect how they act
Interpersonal psychotherapy: a talking therapy that
focuses on relationship-based issues
Dietary counselling: a talking therapy to help people
maintain a healthy diet
Psychodynamic therapy: counselling that focuses on
how a person’s personality and life experiences
influence their current thoughts, feelings, relationships
and behaviour .
From Faith to Action
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How can our faith help people with eating disorders?
What actions can we take?
1 Corinthians 13:13
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the
greatest of these is love.
Ephesians 4:2
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one
another in love.
1 John 4:7
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.
Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
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