Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder described the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th Edition) and a serious problem that many people face. The most important characteristic of this disorder is binge eating, which is when there is a lack of control in eating and eating is done disproportionately (eat too much in short span of time, more than required). Obese people can also have bulimia, but the percentage is very less. It has also been hypothesised to be common among young adults and is found more in females with a ratio of 10:1 in comparison to men.
The diagnostic criteria is a binge eating once a week for at least 3 months. The other necessary criteria is a sense of guilt after eating which causes the person to then purge (either manually or by using medication) to overcompensate for a mistake they feel they've made. The mistake they feel is knowing that eating this way is irresponsible and they try to make up for it by purge. People diagnosed with this disorder are concerned about weight and looks and have a faulty self-evaluation but do not possess that same fear of fat like in anorexia nervosa.
The severity of the disorder can range from:
o Mild – purging 1 to 3 times per week
o Moderate – purging 4 to 7 times per week
o Severe – purging 8 to 13 times per week
o Extreme – purging 14 or more times per week
Two areas of the brain are considered to be highly related with such behaviour - the ventromedial hypothalamus and the lateral hypothalamus – which are related to the start and stop factors to eating. It is supported by some evidence that binge eating people have some problem with stop signal.
The possible consequences to bulimic behaviour are:
o Fluid and electrolyte imbalance
o Gastric problems
o Malnutrition
People prone to bulimia nervosa can:
o Show temperamental characteristics like low self esteem, concern of weight, depression and social anxiety disorders
o Have environmental factors influence them like parental or peer evaluation, cultural factors, physical abuse/trauma
o Possess genetic and physiological inclinations like childhood obesity, early puberty, monozygotic twins, genetic vulnerability
