The Compulsive Eater

Nancy Ruiz 

English 214

Stock 

10 May 2012

The Compulsive Eater

Young females are influenced by societies expectations and go through various dilemmas everyday, which is the main cause for stress. One easy solution that may come to their mind is compulsive eating. Compulsive eating “is seen primarily in women and is defined by the periodic episode of uncontrolled eating in excessive amounts of food, often to the point of illness” (Ondercin 1). A large portion of the problem is not only society, but can also be the modern fast food industries. Although some solutions aren’t always found by these victims, there are numerous types of treatments that can help with their sickness and this can encourage people to gain knowledge on products provided by these industries.

        As a female growing up in a self-absorbed society, I felt pressured into looking a certain way and this added daily stress. Unlike most females my principles came first and I decided to eat regularly or what I thought was best for my body. As girls started becoming young women they also started changing and were becoming those typical women, who were always on diets and never really comfortable with their body. When these females would eat they either served themselves  enormous portions or wouldn’t eat for an entire day. The food they would eat was not the healthiest, but it gave them great satisfaction that they were coping with their stress.

        Some women are unable to handle the pressures of becoming the perfect women society wants them to be. Compulsive eating can be an easy way to escape certain pressures or stresses. This problem can be considered an eating disorder, which about 10% of female college students suffer from (Onderine 1). Compulsive eaters are becoming food junkies and soon enough they become obese with severe health problems. For example, some of these women may have a muffin top or belly fat, this is a trigger to start eating compulsively every time they get a chance. After these compulsive eaters have addressed their problem, they want to lose weight. Although this is admirable, it will be harder and could lead to severe consequences, such as: helplessness, guilt, disgrace, and failure. Many of these women relapse to bad habits, which leads them further into the eating disorder.

       Entering puberty could be frightening, emotional, stressful, and confusing for young women. As I said before women have a certain image of the “Ideal” body and even though some try to look that way they can’t biologically. Some bodies take slower to metabolize than others and this can cause a weight gain; especially when eating large amounts of food. Being thin according to friends is being happy, successful, and accepted into society. According to Dr. Kevin Shannon, about 4.2% of females believe they don’t meet these requirements of being thin or having idealistic body types and this is when they enter a deep depression. 

Compulsive eaters at times get addicted to a certain type of food and that is most commonly fast food. People often enjoy fast food, because they get their food quickly and at a low cost. Also they don’t have to cook at home and get a large amount at times. Fast food industries are just concern with the sales they are making. They don’t care if their costumers are going through health, economic, or any other issues. The product they serve is of poor quality. Fast food industries do anything to appeal to their costumers. For example, McDonald's just added a light calorie meal for people who are trying to be healthier. The fast food industries add more chemical to the meat and other products to get consumers addicted to their product. The most common and popular fast food restaurant that adds these ingredients is McDonald’s, which “announced last week that, as of last August, is has stopped using ammonium hydroxide in the production of its hamburgers” (Pfeiffer). Many PETA members are against these fast food industries, because the farms which produce these meats are involved with animal cruelty. In the 1990s drive thrus were increasingly promoted and this caused purchases to increase. This seemed easier to costumers instead of going to grocery stores and cooking the food themselves. They could also get as much food as they pleased. 

Although I have never suffered from compulsive eating, I have experienced it through a friend. She was chubby when first entering her teens and once she began high school she decided she wanted to be thin. She was trying out for the cheerleading team as a flyer, but they had mentioned that her weight was a problem. She began to eat numerous times a day in large amounts, but never gained weight. She was very thin, to the point that her jaw line and cheek bones would be noticeable and the girls at school would constantly tease her. Most of her close didn’t fit her properly and she was constantly getting sick during the school year. She first suffered from compulsive eating, but after it had lead to bulimia. Dr. Kevin Shannon describes bulimia as “an emotional disorder in which bouts of extreme overeating are followed by depression and self-induced vomiting, purging, or fasting” (Shannon). It was hard for her to tackle two disorders at once, but she was observing what was happening to her body and she felt as if she had made a mistake. She soon started a treatment and was surprised she wasn’t the only teen going through this problem. 

Different types of therapies are instructed for all types of patients. Compulsive eating is not only a biological issue, but it’s also psychological.

            The treatment: “ [addressed] more than just [her] symptoms and destructive eating habits. It
            [should’ve] also address the root causes of the problem—the emotional triggers that lead to
            binge eating and your difficulty coping with stress, anxiety, fear, sadness, and other
            uncomfortable emotions”(Smith).                                              

There are three types of therapies that can help these patients establish themselves back into normal eating habits: Cognitive-behavioral therapy, Interpersonal psychotherapy, and Dialectical behavior therapy. Smith describe all three therapies. Cognitive-behavioral therapy “focuses on the dysfunctional thoughts and behaviors involved in binge eating. One of the main goals is for you to become more self-aware of how you use food to deal with emotions” (Smith). This sort of therapy helps the person find his or herself instead of relying on food and media images. Interpersonal psychotherapy “focuses on the relationship problems and interpersonal issues that contribute to compulsive eating. Your therapist will help you improve your communication skills and develop healthier relationships with family members and friends” (Smith). At times patients don’t know how to express themselves to the people they are close to, so instead they eat whatever they can. Therapy helps these patients find their voice. Dialectical behavior therapy “combines cognitive-behavioral techniques with mindfulness meditation. The emphasis of therapy is on teaching binge eaters how to accept themselves, tolerate stress better, and regulate their emotions” (Smith).  Compulsive eaters put themselves down most of the time when they view themselves in the mirror. During this type of therapy they learn how to accept themselves for the person they are instead of the person, people want them to be. 

Compulsive eating is addicting, but with the proper help it can be stopped. This eating disorder needs to be brought to the attention of all people. Fast food industries need to understand the health hazards they are causing. It’s not all about being the most popular restaurant, but about making the customer happy and healthy. Compulsive eaters need to find help in order to accept the person they are inside. 

Work Cited 

Dunn, Patricia K., and Patricia Ondercin. "Personality Variables Related To Compulsive Eating In      
      College Women." Journal Of  Clinical Psychology 37.1 (1981): 43-49.

Laessle, Reinhold G., and Simone Schulz. "Stress-Induced Laboratory Eating Behavior In Obese  Women With Binge Eating Disorder."International Journal Of Eating Disorders 42.6 (2009): 505-     
      510.

 Latner, Janet D., Juliet K. Rosewall, and Amy M. Chisholm. "Food Volume Effects On Intake And    
      Appetite In Women With Binge- Eating Disorder And Weight-Matched Controls." International 
      Journal Of Eating Disorders 42.1 (2009): 68-75.

Smith, M., S. Barston, R. Segal, and J. Segal. "Binge Eating Disorder." Helpguide.org. Help guide, 2012. Web. 2 May 2012. <http://www.helpguide.org/mental/binge_eating_disorder.htm>.

Eric Pfeiffer, . "McDonald’s confirms that it’s no longer using ‘pink slime’ chemical in hamburgers." http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/mcdonald-confirms-no-longer-using-pink-slime-chemicals-171209662.html. N.p., 2012. Web. 6 May 2012. <http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/mcdonald-confirms-no-longer-using-pink-slime-chemicals-171209662.html>.