What Kind of Impacts can eating disorders have?
Emotional Impacts
Eating disorders can end up leading to things like depression, self harm, and suicide because of how the eating disorder makes them feel about their self. Adolescents and teenagers who suffer from anorexia are at a greater risk for anxiety and depression in young adulthood. This anxiety can occur even after a person undergoes anorexia treatment. Additionally, because anorexia commonly occurs along with other mental disorders including depression, an increased risk for self-harmful and suicidal behaviors is an effect of anorexia. Alcohol and drug abuse are also commonly found in patients suffering from anorexia.
Physical Impacts
Eating disorders from things like over eating, under eating, purging, and eating toxic substances can all effect your physical health. Some of the physical effects can be neurological problems including temporary or permanent nerve damage effecting the brain or other parts of the body, blood problems such as anemia or pancytopenia, a dramatic reduction in the production of blood cells, gastrointestinal problems including bloating, constipation and reflux, and multi-organ failure in the very late stages of anorexia
Hormonal Impacts
One of the most serious effects of eating disorders in women and teenage girls is the hormonal changes that can occur. These hormonal effects can result in the temporary loss of menstruation and in some cases, permanent infertility. Specific hormonal effects of anorexia include: reduced reproductive hormone levels including estrogen, which is important for healthy hearts and bones, and dehydroepiandrosterone (which is important for bone health and other functions), reduced thyroid hormones, increased stress hormones, reduced growth hormones.