Eating disorders are conditions that occur in people who experience a difficult relationship with food. They may face extreme guilt with eating, a fear of weight gain and an unrealistic body image. These thoughts can disrupt and take over their daily lives. Here what parents need to know about 2 eating disorders: anorexia nervosa (commonly known as anorexia) and bulimia nervosa (commonly known as bulimia). Some people show signs and symptoms of both eating disorders. What is anorexia? Anorexia is an eating disorder that results in unhealthy weight loss. People with anorexia may have a distorted body image, and they restrict their calories and/or purge to reach unrealistic weight goals. Calorie restriction often involves increasingly narrow food choices, smaller portion sizes and skipped meals. Guilt about eating can lead to purging through exercise, vomiting or medications such as laxatives. Malnutrition can develop, with potential harm to typical growth and development. In This Section HEALTH ISSUES facebook sharing button Share pinterest sharing button email sharing button print sharing button Anorexia & Bulimia: How Eating Disorders Can Affect Your Child a woman sitting at a table Eating disorders are conditions that occur in people who experience a difficult relationship with food. They may face extreme guilt with eating, a fear of weight gain and an unrealistic body image. These thoughts can disrupt and take over their daily lives. Here what parents need to know about 2 eating disorders: anorexia nervosa (commonly known as anorexia) and bulimia nervosa (commonly known as bulimia). Some people show signs and symptoms of both eating disorders. What is anorexia? Anorexia is an eating disorder that results in unhealthy weight loss. People with anorexia may have a distorted body image, and they restrict their calories and/or purge to reach unrealistic weight goals. Calorie restriction often involves increasingly narrow food choices, smaller portion sizes and skipped meals. Guilt about eating can lead to purging through exercise, vomiting or medications such as laxatives. Malnutrition can develop, with potential harm to typical growth and development. Who can develop anorexia? Although anorexia is more common in females, anyone can develop anorexia. People from all genders, races, ethnicities, ages and social and economic backgrounds can develop anorexia. People who develop anorexia frequently start with a reasonable goal of wanting to live a healthier lifestyle. However, at some point, obsessive thoughts about dieting, exercising, and losing weight take over. These lead to unhealthy behaviors and excessive weight loss. The eating disorder may cause the child to become secretive about their eating and restriction. The development of an eating disorder can be subtle and often goes unrecognized by doctors and parents. What types of behaviors may be signs of anorexia? People with anorexia control their weight. They may Eat only a small number of "safe" foods, usually low in calories and fat Avoid eating food on their plate by moving it around or cutting it up into tiny pieces Not eat food they cook for others Do things to keep their mind off their hunger, such as chewing gum or drinking large amounts of water Exercise in excess Your child may also Wear baggy clothes to hide their body Spend more time alone and away from friends and family Tire more quickly Seem depressed or anxious Be more emotional, or quick to cry or get angry What is bulimia? Bulimia is an eating disorder in which a person eats large amounts of food (binges) and then tries to undo the effects of the binge in some way. Usually, the person rids (purges) the food that was eaten. What is bingeing and purging? During a binge, people with bulimia eat large amounts of food, often in a fairly short time. Binges usually end when there is no more food to eat, the person's stomach hurts from eating, or a distraction interrupts the binge. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/emot - @dr.tommymartin