Angela Thibodeau
Life Span Development for the Health Professions
February 05, 2015
Professor Rebecca Ramirez
Abstract
Society is sending a message to young women and men that in order to be beautiful and succesful then you have to be skinny. This notion of losing weight at all costs is causing eating disorders. The effects of eating unhealthy can be deadly. This paper explores the unhealthy effects of eating disorders.
The Unhealthy Effects of Eating Disorders Have you ever looked in the mirror and wish you could do something about your weight? After all, what hamburger loving American can 't afford to shed 5–10 extra pounds? In 1970 when slim became the new curvy, woman—and men alike, became more concerned about their appearance. Gone are the days when a woman could be proud of her perfect hour glass figure. With the invention of a slim waist line, there also came the birth of eating disorders. From anorexia to bulimia, men and women seem willing to do what ever it takes to follow the newest fad. Eating disorders have an unhealthy effect on the human body, and the consequences are deadly. Merriam Webster defines anorexia as “a serious physical and emotional illness in which an abnormal fear of being fat leads to very poor eating habits and dangerous weight loss.” (Merriam Webster). Anorexia can additionally be defined as being 15% under the average weight for your gender, age and height. (Help Guide). “2,000 calories is a rough average of what people eat in a day. But your body might need more or less than 2,000. Height, weight, gender, age and activity level all affect your caloric needs.” (HowStuffWorks). People who suffer from anorexia consume a restricted diet, less than 2,000 calories per day, which causes the body to go into starvation mode and leads to fatal consequences. For the purposes of this essay “starvation mode is defined as a concept where your metabolic rate declines during the process of caloric
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