Eating disorders are serious and complex mental health conditions that involve extreme preoccupation with food, weight, and body shape. Far from being a "lifestyle choice" or a phase, they are medical illnesses with the second highest mortality rate of any mental health condition, often leading to severe physical complications. Common Types of Eating Disorders
: The most common eating disorder in the U.S.. It involves losing control over eating and consuming large amounts of food until uncomfortably full, often followed by intense guilt and shame. Unlike bulimia, BED does not involve regular purging behaviors. Mental Health Eating Disorders
: A limitation of food intake based on sensory characteristics (texture, smell) or fear of consequences like choking, rather than body image concerns. The Mental Health Connection Eating disorders are serious and complex mental health
: Involves cycles of binge eating (consuming large amounts of food rapidly) followed by compensatory "purging" behaviors like self-induced vomiting, excessive exercise, or laxative misuse. It involves losing control over eating and consuming
Eating disorders rarely occur in isolation and are frequently linked to other psychiatric conditions: What are Eating Disorders? - SAMHSA