What causes eating disorders?

When a young girl walks through the mall during a busy Christmas shopping time, she is exposed to giant posters of skinny models, peers, and underweight mannequins. This exposure can affect the self-esteem and self-confidence of a young, impressionable girl in ways that may cause the onset of dangerous eating disorders.

While environmental and social issues are often the main causes of the eating disorders, there are many factors that can contribute to the development of eating disorders. In fact, the factors range from emotional, psychological, interpersonal, and behavioral, and all attack the physical and emotional strength of the sufferer.

Sufferers will often turn to destructive eating habits to deal with negative feelings and emotions. Whether they were caused by friends, commercials, or magazines, these habits can cause damage to the physical and mental health to the sufferer.

Here is a list of factors that have been found to contribute to eating disorders:

1. Problematic Relationships

When an individual is suffering from a stressful relationship with a loved one, they may be more inclined to compensate with an eating disorder. Family history is also a big factor, as a history of abuse or difficulty expressing emotion can attack the capability to deal of the individual.

2. Low Self-esteem

Low self-esteem can be caused by many different things, but ultimately lead to feelings of inadequacy. Eating disorders are a way for individuals to gain control of their lives and fight the negative feelings they have towards themselves. Low self-esteem can also be a problem when an individual is constantly teased about their weight, especially by peers in school.

3. Negative Emotions

Emotions such as depression, anger, or loneliness can cause eating disorders, as the individual may expressive these negative emotions through negative eating habits. Working through these emotions through counseling or other therapy can help treat an eating disorder.

4. Social Factors

As mentioned before, social factors play a large part in causing eating disorders. From cultural pressures to cultural norms, much of society’s opinion on attractiveness lies in the body shape and thinness of a person. The way that beauty is defined in the American society places extreme pressure on the individual to maintain a certain weight relative to their height, and stay “fit” to stay attractive. As such, the combination of cultural expectations and social definitions of beauty can cause a young boy or girl to develop an eating disorder.

5. Biological Factors

Research has found that eating disorders often run through families. In addition to having genetic ties, eating disorders are also tied to biological causes. For example, chemical imbalances in the brain has been found to cause problems in eating habits that often contribute to eating disorders.

All of these factors play a part in the development of eating disorders. However, it is usually not just one or even two factors that causes an onset of an eating disorder. As such, it is important to keep all possible causes in mind to fully understand the reason behind the destructive eating habits that you or a loved one may be experiencing.