Orders to go and eating disorders.
Orders to go is a such a great invention and so helpful, especially when we have super busy days or we are celebrating a happy occasion; no time to cook or prepare a meal not to mention that so often we crave a certain type of food we simply don’t have the skill or the tools to make it. Take for an example pizza or fresh tacos at the local Mexican restaurant. I love both and I cannot help but notice how big the lines at the take out counter are when I visit my favorite small and cozy restaurants
We all enjoy the opportunity to order to go; it’s a great thing since we live such busy lives and we try so hard to juggle it all. But, what happens when we place three simple letters “dis” in front of the word “order”, shifting it from an “order ” to “disorder”. The change is dramatic and not too inviting; a great thing becomes a troubled event.
According to the latest eating disorder statistics provided by the National Eating Disorder Association, 10 million American women suffer from eating disorders.
- 10-15% of all Americans suffer from some type of serious eating disorder.
- 61% of American adults are either overweight or obese.
- One out of every five US adults is classified as obese.
- An estimated 10-15% of people with anorexia or bulimia are males. Many clinicians believe that this figure is underreported because many men are ashamed to admit that they may be suffering from something thought to affect only women.
- Seventy-seven percent of individuals with eating disorders report that the illness can last anywhere from one to 15 years or even longer in some cases. It is estimated that approximately six percent of serious cases die. For many others, there is long-term, irreversible consequences which can affect one’s physical and emotional health. Up to now, only 50% all people with this devastating disease report being cured.
- One in 200 American women suffers from anorexia.
- 1.1% – 4.2% of females suffer from bulimia nervosa in their lifetime.
- As many as 10% of college women suffer from a clinical or nearly clinical eating disorder, including 5.1% who suffer from bulimia nervosa.
- Studies indicate that by their first year of college, 4.5 to 18% of women and 0.4% of men have a history of bulimia.
I was one of the bulimia girls in my early twenties and I am happy to say that I am no longer included in that statistic.
Moving forward I’ve come to meet and build friendships with people experiencing the same issues with food; we surely had lots in common to share and feel and express; so I know how you feel!
Recently I was privileged enough to meet Erica Ives, the author of a fantastic must read book “Decode the Controlled Chaos”. She is truly an expert in the area who knows and understands eating disorders. Erica knows first hand what eating disorder means and professionally she is also a licensed therapist with a deep and sincere passion to help the ones living with eating disorders. We can develop and build a healthy relationship with food so let’s do it!
We live in a country with an abundance of great produce and food products; labeled correctly and packaged so beautifully. What are we waiting for? On your next trip to the supermarket just look at the spread of colors right in front of you at the vegetable and fruit section. If vegetables and fruits can, so can we color our lives instead of living life with chaos.
Read more posts by Ana Weber. Ana is a blogger for JenningsWire.
